Half-Bloods of All Sorts
by flabbergastedbaboom
Summary: Percy, Annabeth, and Grover must travel to Hogwarts to protect Harry, Ron, and Hermione as Voldemort grows stronger. But, when Harry and co grow suspicious of the so called "exchange students", can Percy, Annabeth, and Grover keep their true identities a secret? And what happens when Hades discovers that Tom Riddle has been avoiding death? Nico perhaps? Rated T just in case
1. Chapter I: Percy

**_Percy_**

"Perseus Jackson! I'm going to kill you!"

For Percy, this was a pretty normal thing for him to hear. Someone almost always wanted to kill him, Annabeth especially. This was why it was no surprise that Annabeth had a knife in her hand as she stomped up the porch steps of the Big House towards him.

The look on Annabeth's face would make any _normal_ person run for cover. But Percy wasn't exactly normal. Being the son of a sea god seemed to classify him as quite _abnormal_.

"How could you leave the new campers with Travis and Conner?" she exclaimed angrily.

There had been a significant increase in the new campers that were arriving at camp. The gods had been busy.

Percy leaned back on the porch rail, looking into Annabeth's stormy grey eyes with pleasure. She was fuming with rage, she might as well have had. Her blonde, curly hair fell around her shoulders. _Gods, she's beautiful_, Percy thought.

"Nice to see you too Wise Girl," Percy said, cracking a wide, easy going smile. Annabeth rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.

"The Stoll's almost traumatized those poor kids! Two of them were trying to escape on pegasi, and I found another one on a cell phone trying to call her mom," Annabeth said.

"So?" Percy asked. Sure, cell phones were like a sign to monsters saying "KILLL ME! KILL ME!", but Camp Half Blood was the safest place on earth.

"Her _father_ is the mortal one, Percy," Annabeth replied, shaking her head as if this should be common knowledge.

"Okay, I'm sorry, I messed up, I get it," Percy relented, holding up his hands in defeat. Throughout the many years he had known Annabeth, Percy learnt that it was better to accept the fact that she was _always_ right, and move on.

"Why would you think for _one_ _second_ that was a good idea to leave those kids with Connor and Travis?" Annabeth sighed.

"I never said I thought it was a _good_ idea, but Grover told me he was down here, so I-"

"Grover? Grover's here?" Annabeth interrupted him.

"Well, he contacted me through our empathy link and told me to come to the Big House," Percy explained. "So, here I am and there's no sign of him anywhere," Percy let out a sigh. He turned to look out over the camp, resting his elbows on the railing.

Annabeth's expression softened and she leaned over the railing beside Percy, exhaling deeply as she did so.

"I haven't seen him since my birthday," Percy said.

"Oh, come on. You've been apart from him longer than this. And really, you're never actually 'apart' with that empathy link of yours," Annabeth said, nudging Percy slightly. She _always_ knew the right thing to say. Percy smiled and wrapped an arm around her waist. She smiled back and kissed him softly.

"You said this weren't going to make this easy," Percy said once they separated. Annabeth rolled her eyes and punched him lightly in the stomach.

"You're _such_ a Seaweed Brain," she said. Percy just smiled. Ever since the Percy had helped to defeat Kronos a week ago, things were really starting to look up.

Percy had to be honest with himself; he past week might as well have been the best week of his life. Though he hadn't seen Grover in a while, he had had lots of free time to spend with Annabeth. He was dating Annabeth, the most amazing girl in the world, for crying out loud. They had been through so much together already, he just hoped they could make it through dating.

Percy kissed Annabeth again, holding her close. Annabeth ran a hand through his messy hair. Annabeth put her head on Percy's chest and he held her tightly. They stood there for a minute, looking out over the camp. In the distance, they could see Katie Gardener scolding the Stoll brothers and comforting the newer campers.

"Did you tell Katie to-?"

"Yep," Annabeth replied before Percy could even finish his question. "I wasn't going to leave them alone _again_,"

"Hey guys!" a familiar voice yelled. Grover ran towards the couple, waving excitedly. He wore no hat or fake legs, just let his horns and fuzzy legs be free. He sped up the steps of the Big House and tackled the two into a ginormous hug.

"Grover, where'd you disappear to last week?" Percy asked, clapping his old friend on the back.

"I had some clean up to do in Central Park. There were a couple of nymphs who were kind of angry about the whole destruction thing with Kronos and his army... burnt trees, destroyed land, it's horrible... usual 'Lord of the Wild' stuff," he shrugged. A goofy smile stretched across his face. "Sorry I interrupted, eh Perce?"

"Har dee har har," Percy laughed dryly. "Why'd you tell me to come here anyways?"

"Chiron IM-ed me earlier and told me to get down to the Big House fast as I could. He said he wanted to see you two also," Grover explained. Percy frowned slightly and looked around for their centaur friend.

"Grover, hello," Chiron said, trotting up to the reunited trio from behind. "Ah, perfect, Percy and Annabeth, you're here as well. I have some important things to discuss with you. Please, come join me inside,"

Annabeth, Percy, and Grover followed Chiron into the Big House and took a seat around the table. Chiron placed his hands on the table, his tail swishing behind him.

"I assume you understand the importance of this meeting," Chiron said. Annabeth nodded, but Percy just frowned in confusion.

"Well, what makes it so different from the last billion and two?" he asked. Annabeth looked at him as if wondering how he could be so thick-headed all the time.

"Percy, Grover is Lord of the Wild now. Chiron wouldn't ask him to come unless it was really urgent," she explained. Percy nodded in comprehension and sunk down into his seat, slightly embarrassed that Annabeth had to explain this to him.

"Like I was saying, there is a very important matter at hand. Lately, there have been some strange occurrences in... well... in Britain," Chiron said.

"But the gods moved into the Western Civilization," Annabeth interjected pointedly. "Why would the problems in Britain involve us?"

"I've been asked by a good friend to send a few capable demigods to a boarding school in Britain. There are some select students that need protection from Dark forces. A threat that could possibly do as much damage as Kronos,"

"Dark forces? Um... Chiron, I'm not exactly a _demigod_, I'm a satyr," Grover interrupted, pointing to his horns.

"I'm well aware, Mr. Underwood, but I was hoping you would accompany Percy and Annabeth. I know you're very busy with damage control, but this will only be for a month or two, and I'm sure the rest of the Council of Cloven Elders would be willing to take over for the time being. You're an expert protector, and I'm sure these two may need a kick to stay focused. You're the first satyr I would think of to turn to," Chiron said. Percy could tell Chiron was buttering Grover up a bit to convince him to join us, and it seemed to be working.

"I guess I could use a break... It'll be just like old times! The three amigos, back together for another quest," Grover smiled, warming up to the idea.

"And Annabeth, you can take Daeldus's laptop and continue working on your designs for the new cabins and Mount Olympus. This way, your work schedule won't have to be compromised," Chiron continued. Annabeth nodded slowly.

Chiron now turned to Percy "Well, Percy?"

"So, I just fought a war, defeated Kronos, and completed a prophecy. And now that I finally have some peace, you want me to go to some preppy British boarding school to protect a few fancy British kids from a British bad guy?" Percy asked. Chiron paused for a moment then nodded.

"That just about sums it up... Oh! But you can't reveal to anyone you're demigods," Chiron said. Grover opened his mouth to speak. "My apologies. You can't reveal that you are two demigods, and a satyr," Chiron added. "One last thing... This school is no ordinary school. It is for children who have special powers,"

"Like demigods?" Annabeth questioned. Chiron pursed his lips.

"No, not exactly. Some people believe that they were blessed by Hecate long ago. Essentially, this is a school for young witches and wizards. The school is called Hogwarts,"


	2. Chapter II: Annabeth

**_Annabeth_**

Annabeth needed answers. As a daughter of Athena, she hated unanswered questions. Unfortunately for her, there were hundreds floating around in her mind.

Percy's gaped at Chiron. "You're kidding, right? Witches and wizards only exist in fairy tales,"

"That's what people think of the Greek gods, yet here we are," Chiron said, stomping his hoof for effect.

"You'll board a plane-"

"Problem!" Percy said immediately, jumping up from his seat. "I don't do planes. Boats, definitely, cars and trains, why not, Pegasi, sure, but planes, nuh-uh. No chance," He shook his head and paced nervously.

"Percy, calm down," Annabeth said, placing a hand on his arm. "You just saved Olympus. I don't think Zeus is going to blow you out of the sky. Besides, I don't think your dad, or my mom, will allow him to,"

"Also, you'll have the Lord of the Wild with you," Grover grinned, trying to make a joke.

Annabeth and Grover's words seemed to calm Percy down. He eased back into his chair. Annabeth nodded at Chiron, as if telling him to continue, and squeezed Percy's hand tightly.

"In the morning on the 31st, you will be flying..." Chiron paused and glanced at Percy quickly. "...into London. You will meet a man named Rubeus Hagrid and he will take you to buy all your school supplies. You'll spend a night with the Weasley family, then board the train to Hogwarts. You will pretend to be American exchange students from a private American wizarding school. The only people in the school aware of your true identities are the Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, and Hagrid, the groundskeeper,"

Annabeth's thoughts spun wildly, ready to burst with questions. How would they read the books? Would they find time to train? What kind of name was 'Hogwarts' anyways?

"How are we supposed to disguise ourselves as wizards? We don't have any magical powers," Annabeth asked, voicing one of the many questions floating around in her head.

"I asked Hecate to grant you with fake wands to preform magic with. They will be equipped with all the spells you need to know and are activated by your voice signature, so only you will be able to use them,"

"You said we were going to protect some students; who are they?" Annabeth asked another question.

"Three students your age; Ronald Weasley, Hermione Granger, and Harry Potter,"

"Why do they need protection?" Annabeth inquired. She threw out her questions one after the other.

"I told you, there are many dark forces in the wizarding world," Chiron said. "My friend sent over these clippings from their newspaper in the hopes that they will give you a better understanding of the current situation in the wizarding world," Chiron reached into his coat and pulled out a stack of papers. He held them out and gave them to Annabeth. As soon as she got a hold of them, she was already flipping through the different articles.

The articles had very unusual names: 'The Boy Who Lived', 'The Tri-Wizard Tournament Returns', 'Sirius Black Escapes from Azkaban', 'The Dark Lord Returns?', 'Dolores Umbridge, Taking Over Hogwarts', 'The Boy Who Lies?', 'The Dark Lord, Alive?', 'Sirius Black, Finally Dead', and many others.

"I advise you read them over in private. The Poseidon cabin maybe? I don't think Tyson is at camp now, is he?" Chiron asked. Percy shook his head.

"Come on Annabeth," Percy said, getting to his feet. "We'll look at the articles in my cabin," Annabeth was too focused on trying to read one of the articles on Sirius Black, Percy had to take her by the shoulders and lead her out of the room.

"What have I gotten myself into," Grover muttered to himself as they walked across the camp grounds. "I still have so much work to do with the nymphs and I promised Juniper I'd spend some more time with her. It's her birthday on the September 8th,"

"I'm sure she'll understand Grover," Percy said, placing a reassuring hand on his friends shoulder.

As soon as they entered the Poseidon cabin, Annabeth sat on the floor, resting her back on Percy's bunk. Grover lay on one of the empty beds beside Percy's and let out a long sigh. Percy flopped down on his bed, looking over Annabeth's shoulder.

"Whoa, the pictures are moving!" Percy said in disbelief. At hearing this, Grover scrambled off the bunk to get a better look and settled down beside Annabeth.

"Listen to this," Annabeth piped up suddenly. "'_The Boy Who Lived, By: Rita Skeeter_. Last night, a terrible tragedy took place in the small town of Godric's Hollow. The Dark Lord, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, murdered James and Lily Potter. He attempted to kill their infant son, Harry, as well. Miraculously, it was not Harry who perished, but the You-Know-Who who met his end. The curse was believed to have backfired from Harry onto the Dark Lord. Though the boy survived, he was left with a reminder of the incident. On his forehead, Harry Potter bears a scar in the shape of a lightning bolt. We can only wish him luck in the coming years'" Annabeth read the article slowly, stumbling over a few words. When she did, she would mutter "Stupid dyslexia" and then continued.

"This dude sounds serious," Grover said. He munched on the corner of one of the newspaper clippings.

"But he's dead now," Percy said. "The article said so,"

"Apparently not," Grover said, taking a look at the paper he was slowly turning into a snack. "'After disappearing in the maze as part of the final task of the Tri-Wizard Tournament, Harry Potter returned with the lifeless body of Cedric Diggory, one of the other competitors in the event. Harry Potter claims that the Dark Lord has returned and is gathering his followers.' Man, this sucks," he grumbled, looking at the picture of Cedric Diggory when he was still alive. "Is this guy sparkling?" Grover wondered, squinting at the picture.

"Grover, he's dead. Be respectful," Annabeth scolded.

"Let me see," Percy said, leaning over Grover's shoulder. Percy cracked a wide smile. "He's right. This guy is shiny," Annabeth just rolled her eyes and continued to read the articles. Grover and Percy bit back laughter as they gazed upon the sparkly teenager.

"Does it say anything about the other two kids? Rachel and Herman or whatever their names are?" Percy asked, losing interest in the glittering boy-wonder.

"Ron and Hermione," Annabeth corrected. She pursed her lips and squinted at one of the articles. "Here, it says 'Harry and his two friends, Ron Wesley and Hermione Granger were held captive by the murderous Sirius Black'... not much else. There's a bit about a different Weasley... 'Charlie Weasley was working with the sanctuary's newest dragon, a Nigerian Ridgeback, named Norbert'... maybe that's his brother or something," Annabeth seemed to be deep in thought.

"You know Perce, this Harry kid kinda looks like you, except for the glasses," Grover remarked. Annabeth held one of pictures of Harry beside Percy's face.

"Yeah... I see that... they'd look more a like if Harry had green eyes too, but the hair is similar," she said.

"But, I'm better looking, right?" Percy said, flashing a smile at Annabeth.

"I don't know, Seaweed Brain. I've always been into the scrawny-with-glasses look," Annabeth joked. Percy frowned and dropped his head.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Chiron poked his head into the room.

"Hey! Are you here to tell us theres a giant living at Hogwarts too?" Percy asked jokingly.

"Half-giant, but he's harmless," Chiron said, waving it off. He tossed three small pamphlets on the ground in front of us. "Anyways, could you try to get these signed by your parents? Grover, I signed yours for you. They're permission form for town days," With that, Chiron left the room.


	3. Chapter III: Ron

**Hey guys**. **I'm not that big a fan of author notes, but I just wanted to say a few things**

**1. Thanks so much for the positive feedback! It gave me the confidence boost I needed to finish this next chapter.**

**2. I hope you'll bear with me; this is my first time writing from Ron's P.O.V. I'll hopefully figure him out more as I write with him.**

**and 3. someone wrote to me saying that Harry DOES have green eyes (in regards to the previous chapter where Annabeth brings up eye colour). I do know that, but I just assumed the Daily Prophet is in black and white. Thanks, though. It may have caused confusion for some people.**

**I hope you enjoy this next chapter!**

Ron sat at the dinner table, drumming his fingers on the table impatiently. Harry and Hermione should have arrived already. _Where were they?_ he thought.

"Ron, stop tapping the table. They'll be here any minute. Don't worry," Mrs. Weasley said. Just then there was a knock on the door. Ron jumped up and raced to open it.

He wrenched the door open and smiled at Hermione. She looked as if she had shrunk over the summer, though Ron assumed it was his growth spurt that made her seem so small.

"Hermione!" he exclaimed, pulling her into a tight hug. "I was wondering when one of you would show up," He patted her frizzy hair out of his face.

"Ron, I can't breathe!" she squeaked, placing her hands on his chest to push him away.

"Sorry," he said, still grinning. "How was your summer?"

"It was great actually," Hermione said, putting her trunk on the floor beside her. "I did a lot of traveling with my family. How was yours,"

"Rather dull, actually. Don't tell mum I said so," Ron said. "Well, come one then. Mum made a special dinner, and I'm hungry," Ron said, motioning to the kitchen.

"You're always hungry," Hermione said, following him into the dining room. A chorus of 'hellos' greeted Hermione as they entered the room.

"What took you two so long?" Fred asked.

"Is there something you two aren't telling us?" George asked, a smile twitching at the corner of his lips.

"Shut up," Ron mumbled, blushing a deep shade of red. He sat down beside Hermione, who was already in a deep conversation with Ginny.

_"_Well, I guess we ought to start without Harry," Mrs. Weasley said, glancing at the empty chair at the table. Ron slumped down in his seat glumly. He was looking forward to having both his best friends at dinner, but they couldn't wait forever. "All right, dig in,"

On the table, food was piled high. It reminded Ron of a Hogwarts feast. There was turkey, potatoes, cauliflowers, and other foods he couldn't name, though they were still delicious.

Mid way through the meal, as Hermione was explaining the use of computers to Mr. Weasley, there was another knock on the door. Ron and Hermione exchanged an excited look and leaped from their seats. They raced each other to the door, Hermione beating him by seconds, and yanked the door open. Before Harry knew what was happening, Hermione and Ron tackle him in a hug.

"Finally! I was wondering when you'd get here," Ron exclaimed.

"You don't know how glad I am to see you," Harry said.

"How's your summer been?" Ron asked eagerly. Harry glared at Ron with utter annoyance.

"What do you think Ron?" Harry snapped.

"Sorry for asking, Mr. Sunshine," Ron muttered. He knew the Dursley's were no picnic to live with, but did Harry have to be so snippy about it?

"Sorry. Dudley's been a real git lately," Harry said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Broke my glasses... again,"

"Oh, Harry," Hermione sighed, squinting at the tape around the bridge of his glasses. "I'll fix them once we're on the train. I'd do it now, but there's the 'No magic outside of school' rule," She waved her hand dismissively, as if to say she'd deal with it later.

Harry followed Ron and Hermione back into the dining room.

"Hey Harry, how's it going? Are you going to come out to the joke shop tomorrow?" George asked.

"Yeah, definitely," he replied.

"Hi, Harry," Ginny said warmly when she saw him. Harry smiled broadly. Ron frowned and looked between Harry and Ginny. Was Harry staring at her? _No, he isn't... he's my best mate_, Ron thought, taking a seat. He was jumping to conclusions.

The rest of dinner felt much more complete. With Hermione on his right, Harry on his left, and a turkey leg in his hand, it seemed like a perfect meal. The year was sure to be a great one. However, his mother's next words would change his sixth year at Hogwarts.

"I have a very special announcement," she said, putting her fork down beside her plate. "Tomorrow, there will be some American exchange students coming to spend the night with us. We'll pick them up at Diagon Alley, and then, we're going to take them to the train for Hogwarts," Ron and Harry exchanged a look.

"What school are they coming from?" Hermione asked, her brown eyes flickering with interest.

"'Mr. Bruner's Academy for the Gifted' I believe," Mrs. Weasley said. "Three students... oh, what were there names? Ah, yes, Perseus Jackson, Annabeth Chase, and Grover Underwood,"

"What kind of names are those?" one of the twins wondered.

"Are they dogs, or people?" the other snickered.

"Boys," Mrs. Weasley said sharply. "We have to accept them into our home. And you three, I expect you to guide them through their sixth year as well," she continued. Ron sighed, hoping they wouldn't be annoying, or just plain rude, like Malfoy.

"I'm actually very excited. I believe they are much closer to the Muggle community at there school," Mr. Weasley said.

"Dad," Ginny sighed. "They're coming into a new school. I'm sure the last thing they're worried about is answering your questions," Harry laughed loudly, throwing his head back. Ron stared at him strangely. The joke really wasn't that funny. Ron wasn't sure it was even a joke.

Realizing he was the only one laughing, Harry coughed nervously and went back to eating, stooping his shoulders. _Harry's acting strangely_,Ron thought. He decided to ask him about it later.

"Uh... okay then," Fred said before taking a sip from his cup.

"Why are they transferring?" Hermione persisted, returning to the topic of the exchange students.

"Their school is in the midst of renovations, I believe, so they are sending the students to other wizarding schools for the beginning of the school year," Mrs. Weasley explained.

"Why only three, though?" Hermione inquired. To that, Mrs. Weasley had no answer.

After dinner, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny sat in the girls room, talking about the exchange students.

"I don't get why they're coming to our school, of all places, especially with You-Know-Who getting stronger," Harry said in a whisper.

"Well, Dumbledore had to authorize it, and he would never accept the students if he didn't think they would be safe," Hermione said logically. "Still... I admit... it doesn't make a lot of sense," she added thoughtfully.

Ginny yawned and ran a hand through her hair. Harry smiled and rested his elbows on his knees.

"You tired, Ginny?" he asked in a joking fashion. Ginny stuck her tongue out at Harry and crossed her arms. Ron frowned and looked between Harry and his sister, and then at Hermione. She met his gaze and shrugged, probably noticing Harry's strange behavior as well.

"Well... she's tired, so we might as well go and let them sleep," Ron said, standing up and putting a hand on Harry's shoulder. "Night sis, Hermione," Ron dragged Harry out of the room.

"What's wrong with you?" he asked Harry once they were upstairs in his room.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked, frowning. Ron squinted at him suspiciously.

"You just seem a bit off... I guess," he said, shrugging and sitting on his bed. They got changed and climbed into bed

"Night," Harry said, putting his glasses on the small table beside his bed.

"Night," Ron mumbled, his mind still lingering on Harry's odd behavior. Was there something he wasn't sharing? Ron shook it off and closed his eyes.

_Just go to sleep_, he told himself. And he did.


	4. Chapter IV: Harry

**Half-blood meeting soon :)**

**P.S. GRANGER DANGER 3 (c) starkid :)**

**_Harry_**

Harry lay awake, listening to Ron's snoring, unable to fall asleep. He had counted backwards from a hundred twice, and he had counted so many sheep. He sighed and rolled over.

"Falling... danger... Granger..." Ron murmured.

"What?" Harry asked. Ron's snoring continued and he assumed that his friend was talking in his sleep.

Suddenly, the door creaked open. Harry sat up abruptly and grabbed his glasses off the nightstand. Ginny stood in the doorway, frozen in place.

"Hi," she whispered.

"You scared me," he sighed, rubbing his eyes.

"Sorry," Ginny said. "I just wanted an extra blanket," Ron let out an extra loud snort. "I feel bad you have to share a room with him," Ginny said, looking at her brother, then back at Harry pitifully.

"I get used to it," he whispered back. They stared at each other for longer and Harry's chest tightened. He dropped his gaze and scrambled out of bed.

"Here, take this one," Harry said, snatching the extra blanket at the foot of his bed and giving it to Ginny. She smiled at him.

"Thanks. Well... have a good sleep," she said, putting her hand on his arm then turning to leave. Harry watched as she left, closing the door behind her. Harry let out a deep sigh and sat on his bed. He took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes.

"What's wrong with you, Harry? You keep _looking_ at Ginny. That's your best mate's sister," he muttered to himself. Harry lay back in his bed and finally found sleep.

Harry tossed and turned in his sleep, his mind entangled in a strange dream.

A man in black robes sat on a throne made out of rotting skulls. Lined up on either side of the throne, skeletons stood tall, dressed in military outfits from different centuries. A kid a few years younger than Harry stood in front of the throne in the center of the hall. The kid, looking slightly gothic, wore a dark aviators jacket and jeans. He dark hair and pale skin. His dark eyes flickered back and forth, as if looking for a way out. By his hip, the boy had a black sword, about three feet long.

"Nico, thank you for coming," the man on the throne said. The boy, Nico nodded in reply. "There is a task that I need you to handle,"

"Can't you do it? You're the 'all-powerful' one," Nico mumbled. He had an American accent.

The man on the throne looked down at the boy. Nico shoved his hands in his pockets and sighed, as if he knew he couldn't get out of the job.

"What do you need?" Nico asked reluctantly.

"There is a man named Tom Riddle. He has been avoiding death for much to long. I need you to find out how he is still alive," the man on the throne said. "He is a danger to all and must be stopped,"

"I've never heard of him," Nico said, shrugging.

Harry couldn't believe what he was hearing. How could he not know about Tom Riddle? Then again, many people only knew him by the names "The Dark Lord", "He-Who-Should-Not-Be-Named", "You-Know-Who", or "Voldemort"

"He lives far from here, yet I am still responsible for his soul," the man said.

"Who is he endangering?" Nico inquired.

"Just some children," the man said, waving his hand dismissively. "Not important,"

"Father," Nico said harshly. "There have been enough children killed in the past few weeks. Can't we send protection?" Harry didn't understand what Nico meant. He hadn't heard of anything, in either the muggle or the wizard paper, of children dying.

"Chiron is taking care of it," the man on the throne said. "He's sending your cousin, I believe,"

Nico nodded, then paused before speaking again. "If I do this for you, will you tell me more about my mother?"

"I've told you all I can,"

"But if you think of something else, anything, you'll tell me?" Nico persisted.

The man sighed. "Very well,"

Harry woke up to Ron shaking his shoulder. "Come on, Harry!" he said. "We're leaving any minute," Harry opened his eyes and looked up at Ron's blurry figure. He reached over to the table beside his bed and grabbed his glasses. He put them on and Ron's face came into focus. He was already dressed and ready to go.

"I'm coming," Harry mumbled groggily, rolling out of bed. He got changed into jeans and a t-shirt. He followed Ron down the stairs and into the kitchen for a quick breakfast.

Hermione and Ginny were already at the table, eating the eggs that Mrs. Weasley had prepared. Harry smiled at the girls and sat down.

"Where are Fred and George?" Harry asked.

"They left early this morning for the joke shop," Ron said, in between bites of toast.

"How'd you sleep?" Ginny asked. Harry looked up at Ginny and his heart did another strange tap dance. It had happened the night before as well.

"Fine... well, I did have a strange dream..." he said, spooning some scrambled eggs onto a plate.

"About what?" Hermione asked.

"Oh, uh... it's... There was this scary looking man and this kid that was his son. They were talking about Tom Riddle," Harry continued explaining his dream, though he left out the part about Nico's request to his father if he completed his task.

"That's freaky," Ron said.

"You don't think it has to do anything with the American's, do you?" Ginny wondered. Harry shrugged.

"I don't know. Could be," he said.

"You know, this could be connected to a dream I had," Ron said. They all turned to him, listening intently. "See, I was on a huge stage, and this guy came up to me and gave me some boots. So I put them on and they gave me the power to jump as high as the clouds. And I jumped up, and Hermione, you were sitting on a _throne _and you said I was in danger of falling. Both our dreams had thrones, see?"

They all stared at him in silence. Then, Ginny smacked him upside the head, making Harry laugh.

"Bloody hell, Ginny, what was that for?" he exclaimed, rubbing his head. Ron shot Harry a disapproving glare and he had to suppress his laugh.

"Ron, this is serious," Hermione said.

"So is my dream! I could fall! You know, I was nice enough to put you in my dream,"

"Alright kids! We're off!" Mrs. Weasley said, clapping her hands and entering the dining room. She held a small change purse in her hand. "Time to go,"

They all stood and entered the living where there would be more room. Harry grabbed a handful of galleons from his trunk and shoved them into his pocket.

They all joined hands. Harry's heart fluttered when Ginny slipped her hand in his.

"Ready everybody?" Mrs. Weasley said. Without waiting for a response, they disapparated. A strange sensation rushed through Harry's body. He shut his eyes tight and squeezed Ginny's hand. In a moment, they had arrived in Diagon Alley, directly in front of the joke shop. He let go of Ginny's hand, smiling at her.

"Okay, Ron, Harry, Hermione, here's your supply list," Mrs. Weasley said, holding out a piece of paper. Ron reached out for it, but Mrs. Weasley pulled it out of his reach and handed it to Hermione instead.

"Ginny, come with me dear. I have to get you new robes," Mrs. Weasley. Ginny waved to them as her mother dragged her away.

"Okay, let's go to buy our books," Hermione said, inspecting the list of school supplies. The three of them made their way through the crowds of shoppers and towards Flourish and Blotts. Harry and Ron stopped outside of the "Quality Quidditch Supplies", pressing their noses against the window to get a glimpse of the newest broom.

"Come on!" Hermione said, dragging the two boys along and into the book store. Once inside, Hermione disappeared in between the shelves, calling to the boys when she found one of the books they needed. Once they had collected their books they had to pull Hermione away from the shelves. Normally, it was Ron who needed to be kept from distractions in shops, but not when it came to books.

They went up to the counter and paid for their books. It was then that Harry realized Hermione had at least four more books than him and Ron.

"What's next?" Harry asked as they walked back out into the bustle of Diagon Alley.


	5. Chapter V: Grover

**Yay! Finished this chapter! thanks for the support :) Longest chapter so far. Can you guess whose POV is next?**

**_Grover_**

Grover stood beside Percy and Annabeth, holding their luggage. Him and Annabeth scanned the airport, looking for some sign of who would bring them to Hogwarts. Percy, on the other hand, just looked revealed he had survived the plane ride in the first place. He had done a lot of praying to Zeus.

After another moment, Grover spotted a sign with very messy, barely eligible handwriting. "Purseeus Jaksun, Anbeth Chas, Grovur Undrwod" were scrawled onto a piece of scrap paper. Grover looked up at the man who was holding the sign. Even though he wasn't dyslexic, Grover had trouble reading the writing. He was at least ten feet tall and had long brown hair with an equally fuzzy beard to match. In his free hand, he carried an old pink umbrella.

"Over there," Grover said, pointing to the man. Percy and Annabeth gaped at the tall man, who must've been Rubeus Hagrid.

"Whoa," Percy breathed, his eyes wide with disbelief. The man spotted the three of them staring at him and frowned. "He's... he's a _giant_!"

"Let's go," Annabeth said, pulling them behind her. Grover stooped his shoulders, trying not to draw attention to himself.

"Are you Rubeus Hagrid?" Percy asked.

"Jus' Hagrid is fine," he replied. "An' yer Grover?"

"Uh... I... I'm Grover..." he said, pulling his hat over his ears and tugging at his pant leg.

"Oh, _yer_ the goat!" Hagrid said in a booming voice. Grover looked up timidly at Hagrid, hoping people around. Hagrid just laughed and clapped him on the back, causing Grover to stumble forwards. "An' yer Perseus, then," Percy grimaced at his full name.

"Just Percy," he said.

"An' I 'spose yer Annabeth then?" Hagrid said, turning his attention towards Annabeth. She nodded in reply.

"So, where are we going now?" Annabeth asked. Hagrid smiled.

"Diagon Alley," he said in a whisper.

Diagon Alley wasn't the type of place Grover would enjoy going on a daily basis. It was loud, crowded, his toes were being crushed repeatedly, and he was constantly getting separated from Percy and Annabeth. The only way he was able to find his friends was because Hagrid was so huge.

"Come on Grover!" Percy called back to him. Grover hurried forwards to where he, Annabeth, and Hagrid were waiting for him to catch up.

"I'd be able to keep up if it weren't for all these people," Grover exclaimed, shrugging his duffel higher onto his shoulder.

"I think it's because of your bag, dude" Percy said. "What did you pack in there?"

"Just the necessities..." Grover said. Percy looked at him skeptically.

"And that includes...?"

Grover didn't reply and scratched at the peach fuzz on his chin. What was _really_ packed in the bag were empty cans of ginger ale, his clothes, fake pointy shoes for school, some ambrosia, some armor if they needed, along with some other things... come to think of it, he could have left his gardening materials back at home, but his reed pipes were definitely a necessity. They had gotten him out of some sticky situations.

It had taken quite a bit of mist to keep the contents of his bag covered during security at the airport.

"I can't stick around, so we'll find the Weasley's and you'll be off buyin' your supplies," Hagrid said, looking over the crowded streets. "They should be here today..." he murmured.

"Hagrid, where do we get our wands?" Annabeth asked.

"You go to Mr. Olivander's, he has them for you," he replied, motioning to one of the many stores on the street.

Suddenly, a voice yelled over the noise of the street. "Hagrid!" Hagrid spun around to find whoever was calling his name. A wide smile split across Hagrid's hairy face. Grover looked around, trying to follow Hagrid's gaze, but it's much easier to find someone in the crowd when you're looking from ten feet off the ground.

"Eh, Harry!" Hagrid yelled, waving frantically. Grover's head snapped up. Harry... Harry Potter? Was it him?

A moment later, the same boy who they had read about in the paper pushed through the crowd, a stack of books in his arms. He received a bone crushing hug from Hagrid.

"There yeh are!" Hagrid said, the skinny boy. Grover studied the boy carefully. He was slim and had messy hair, and his eyes actually _were_ green. He did look a bit like Percy, though wasn't quite as tall, and his shoulders weren't as broad either. Grover could tell Annabeth saw the resemblance too, though Percy was completely oblivious.

"Harry! Where'd you go?" another voice called.

"Ron! Hermione! Over here!" Harry called over his shoulder. Once more, there were two names Grover recognized. A boy with ginger hair and freckles rushed towards them, followed by a girl with bushy brown hair. They both carried books in their arms.

"Great to see the two o' you," Hagrid said, smiling broadly. "It's good I found you. These here are the students from America," The three kids suddenly became aware of Grover, Percy, and Annabeth. The bushy haired girl stepped forwards and held out her hand.

"Hi, I'm Hermione, this is Ron, and this is Harry" she said, pointing to the boys as she said their name's. Annabeth reached out and shook Hermione's hand.

"I'm Annabeth, this is Grover, and this is Percy," Annabeth said, gesturing to each of us. The freckled boy, Ron, stifled a laugh and Hermione shot him a rude glare.

"Sorry about him," Hermione said, lowering her voice slightly and rolling her eyes at Ron.

"I've got to get goin'. Gettin' ready for the firs' day of school," Hagrid said, clapping his hands together. "Harry, Ron, Hermione, will you help these three get all there supplies?" he asked, clapping Grover on the back, causing him to stumble forwards.

"Of course. We've already bought our books, but there's no reason we can't go back," Hermione said. Ron groaned loudly. "Oh, Ron,"

"That's the spirit. They need some robes as well, and they have to visit Olivander's too," Hagrid said. He said a quick good bye and then, tucking his pink umbrella underneath his arm, turned and walked away.

The six of them stood facing each other, not saying anyone. It wasn't until Harry was knocked into by a girl with long red hair, the same colour as Ron's. Tiny freckles dotted her face. She was very pretty and had deep brown eyes.

"Sorry!" she said.

"Blimey, Ginny!" Harry exclaimed, though he didn't look particularly angry. Ginny stood up and brushed herself off, and Harry followed suit.

"This is my younger sister, Ginny," Ron said. "She's a bit of an embarrassment," he added under his breath.

"Ron!" Ginny and Hermione exclaimed together.

"I thought you were getting new robes with mum," Ron said, changing the subject quickly.

"We finished early," she replied. Ginny looked back at the three newcomers. "Nice to meet you," she said, smiling warmly.

"I'm Percy, this is Annabeth, and this is Grover," Percy said.

"Have you got your books yet?" she asked.

"Oh, well, we really haven't gotten... anything," Percy said, scratching behind his head nervously.

"Does the other one talk?" Ron whispered to Harry. I guess he wasn't expecting Grover to hear his comment, but Grover had remarkable hearing, considering he was half goat.

"I talk!" Grover said in protest. Ron and Harry stared at him, wide eyed.

"Yes. You do," Percy said slowly, before letting out a loud laugh. A small smile twitched at the corner of Grover's mouth and he boosted his bag higher up on his back.

"Well, first we should get your robes first, so they'll be ready for when we leave," Hermione said. "Then we'll get your books and other supplies, then we can go to Olivander's,"

Grover, Percy, and Annabeth agreed, not knowing what else they would do, and followed the four wizards down the street. They passed many different shops with strange displays in the window. As they walked, some people gave them strange looks. Grover wasn't too surprised. They didn't look like they belonged at all. Percy stood out more then any of them because of his orange camp shirt, with CHB written across the chest. He had insisted there was no harm in wearing it, because no one would recognize what it stood for.

They reached a store called "Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions" and entered. A small bell rang as they did. A stout woman wearing purple robes poked her head up from behind a screen.

"Hello, Ginny dear. Back already? I'm afraid I haven't quite finished with your skirt yet," she said.

"Oh no, Madam Malkin, we're here to get robes for our friends," Ginny said. Grover was slightly surprised at how quickly Ginny had referred to Percy, Annabeth, and him as 'friends'.

"Oh, why of course," she said, clapping her hands together. She rushed forwards and looked at the three of them. She muttered some measurements under her breath and hurried into the back of the shop and returned a moment later with a stack of clothing. Grover tugged at his pants nervously. Madam Malkin distributed the clothes accordingly to Percy, Annabeth and him.

"Well, go on then, change behind there. Boys on the left, my dear, you can go on the right," she said. "I'll be back out in a few minutes," she said before walking into the back room again.

They split up behind the screens and changed into the robes she had given them.

"These pants are _horrible_," Grover hissed, zipping up his fly. Percy just smiled as he buttoned up his shirt. He and Grover wore matching clothes; a white collared shirt, a long sleeved v-neck sweater, grey pleated pants, and black robes with a button on the inside to fasten it closed at the front. Both of them wore their sneakers, having their proper pointed shoes in their bags.

Once the boys were done, they walked out into the main area of the shop. Harry and Ron were talking about brooms, and Hermione and Ginny were deep in conversation about some type of potion.

"Annabeth?" Percy called. There was no reply. Grover frowned and looked at Percy questioningly. He shrugged and tried calling again. "Wise Girl, you okay?"

"I'm not coming out," she said in a low voice.

"Oh, come on Annabeth, it can't be that bad," Grover said. "I'll bet my pants itch more," Annabeth let out a short laugh.

"If you don't come out, you won't see how weird we look," Percy said persuasively. Annabeth peeked out at Percy and Grover, then ducked behind the screen again.

"There, I saw you," she grumbled.

"Annabeth... are you changed?" Percy asked taking a step towards the screen.

She paused before replying."Yes... but-" Percy ducked behind the screen. "Percy, no... Percy... Percy!" Grover laughed ass Percy came out from behind the screen, holding Annabeth tightly around the waist. Her feet were dangling off the ground. She thrashed her arms around. "Put me down," Annabeth growled. Percy laughed and set her down. She was dressed in a skirt, slightly longer than knee length, and grey tights underneath with no shoes. She wore a white collared shirt, and grey v-neck cardigan, and the same fashion robe, except hers was way too long for her.

"This is so demeaning," she grumbled. Annabeth hated wearing skirts and dresses on a daily basis. Every once and a while on a special occasion, she might have worn one, but the fact that she would have to wear a skirt _every day_ obviously made her upset.

"Oh come on, Wise Girl, you look great," Percy said, grinning at Annabeth.

"They do look very nice on you," Ginny chimed in.

Annabeth sighed. "Do I have to wear them all the time at school?" she asked. Hermione shook her head.

"In class, during meals, and in the library," Hermione said. Annabeth clenched her fists.

"I'm sure you'll get used to it," Ginny offered. Grover felt badly for the two girls. They were trying so hard to be welcoming to Annabeth, but she wasn't so accepting yet.

"Oh, good," Madam Malikin said, walking back into the room. "Alright, hop up here dear. Your robes have the most work to be done," she said to Annabeth, motioning to a short podium on the floor. Annabeth begrudgingly stood up on the podium and Madam Malkin placed pins in her robe, skirt, and sleeves of her cardigan.

"Alright, who's next?" she asked as she placed the last pin in Annabeth's skirt. Percy and Grover both had their robes and pants pinned, and within another few minutes, they were finished.

"Come back in half an hour and I'll have them done," Madam Malkins said to them as they walked out of the store. Annabeth was relieved to be back in her regular tank top and cargo shorts, and Grover felt much better in his own clothes as well.

"Ron and I are going to go to the Joke shop," Harry said once they were outside.

"Why don't you take Percy and Grover with you? We can get all the supplies," Hermione suggested. So, the guys and the girls split up for the rest of the trip through Diagon Alley.


	6. Chapter VI: Hermione

**Hey all! So, most of this was done really late at night and my editing was done while I was sick, so I admit I was a bit lazy on this chapter, but next will be even more awesome! Thanks for all the encouragement!**

**Whose POV should be next? (only doing the 2 golden trios)**

**_Hermione_**

Hermione, Annabeth, and Ginny watched as the boys weaved their way through the crowds and towards the Joke Shop. Once they were gone, there was a moment of silence as the three girl exchanged awkward glances.

Hermione inspected Annabeth carefully. She and Ginny had made a few attempts at getting close to her already, but Annabeth didn't seem comfortable around them yet.

Hermione wasn't sure exactly what to think of the new girl yet. She was definitely not one to be messed with, and se radiated a strange aura that Hermione couldn't quite place.

What surprised Hermione the most was the streak of grey in one of Annabeth's blonde curls. She didn't seem like the kind of girl who would colour her hair. What seemed even stranger was that Percy had an identical streak in his darker hair.

Annabeth's eyes widened slightly, as if she just became aware of Hermione and Ginny staring at her. She cleared her throat. "So, what do we need?" Annabeth asked. Hermione wasn't quite used to how she spoke yet.

"Well, you'll most likely need a cauldron, so we may as well get that over with," Hermione said.

The three girls walked towards "Potage's Cauldron Shop", dodging witches and wizards as they went. Annabeth's head turned in all directions as she inspected every detail of Diagon Alley.

"So, have you known Percy and Grover long?" Ginny asked Annabeth.

"Well, I've known Grover since I was seven, and I met Percy when we were twelve," Annabeth said. "We've been going to... school together since I was little,"

"Wait, your school goes as young as seven?" Hermione asked in disbelief.

Annabeth hesitated before replying. "How old are the youngest at Hogwarts?" she wondered.

"Eleven," Hermione replied as they entered the store. She didn't comment on how Annabeth evaded her original question.

"That's a lot of pots," Annabeth murmured, as she pushed through the doors of the cauldron shop. She looked up and down the aisles of cauldrons.

"Well, there are many different types of cauldrons. Some have enchantments, some are made of brass, others copper..." Hermione continued listing the different properties of cauldrons as they walked through the store.

Midway through, she noticed Annabeth wasn't paying any attention. She was staring across the isle at three women, all with a cloaks over their heads that cast a dark shadow across their withered faces. They carried what looked like the materials one would need for knitting. Annabeth went pale.

"Annabeth, are you alright?" Ginny asked.

"Yeah, I, uh... I'm fine," Annabeth said slowly, and rather unconvincingly. "I just... uh... is this a good pot?" she said quickly, snatching a thin, silver cauldron from the shelf beside her.

"The material is much too thin. Here, this one is better," Hermione said, grabbing a copper cauldron that was slightly wider than the last.

"Oh, thanks," Annabeth muttered, stealing another quick glance at the three women before taking the cauldron from Hermione.

She grabbed two identical ones and walked towards the clerk. She placed the cauldrons on the clerk's desk

"Six galleons," the wizard at the desk said. Annabeth looked stunned for a moment, but then, a look of comprehension passed over her face and she dug through her bag and pulled out a handful of galleons. She counted out six coins and dropped the rest in her pocket.

"Thank you very much," the man said, sweeping the coins into her hand.

"Thank you," Annabeth nodded.

The girls exited the shop, each holding one cauldron, and walked across the road to book store, which Hermione was thrilled to be returning to.

Hermione was quite glad the boys were gone at that time. She could spend more time in the book store without being dragged away by Harry and Ron.

When they entered the store, a wide smile split across Annabeth's face, the first Hermione had seen.

"You like reading, I suppose?" Ginny wondered when she saw Annabeth's face.

"Love it," she replied.

"You and Hermione will be fast friends then," Ginny continued. Annabeth smiled again, at Hermione this time.

"So, which books should we look for?" Annabeth inquired further.

"'Standard Book of Spells: Grade Six', 'Advanced Potion Making',  
'Confronting the Faceless', 'A Guide to Advanced Transfiguration', and 'Advanced Rune Translation'" Hermione recited, looking down at the supply list on top of the stack of books.

Annabeth walked over to one of the shelves and picked out a book. She squinted at the writing on the front.

"Is this the transfigure one?" she asked. Hermione looked over her shoulder at the book she had picked up.

"No. This is a book on magical creatures" she replied. Annabeth looked embarrassed. "Not many sixth years still take that class... Which classes _will_ you be taking?" Annabeth hesitated before answering.

"Oh... I'm not sure yet. The courses are different back home," Annabeth said.

"Oh, really? What courses?" Hermione asked, eager to learn about the American school. She had never read about it in any of her books, nor did she remember any teacher speak of it before.

Before Annabeth could respond to Hermione's question, the book shop's door swung open. Hermione turned to see who had entered the store and narrowed her eyes.

"Oh, this is just perfect," Malfoy sneered. "The Weasley, the mud-blood, and... oh, who is this?"

"Ignore him," Hermione whispered to Annabeth sharply. Annabeth nodded curtly. Hermione pulled "Advanced Rune Translation" from the shelf and handed it to Annabeth, then took out another two copies for Percy and Grover.

"I've never seen you before," Malfoy said, approaching Annabeth.

"Malfoy, would you like me to smack your other cheek?" Hermione snapped, remembering when she had given Malfoy a firm slap across the face in their third year at Hogwarts.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Malfoy snarled.

"Why not?"

"Because I'll tell my father and have you expelled," Malfoy hissed, turning his nose up at Hermione.

"Leave us alone," Annabeth said sharply.

"Don't, Anna-"

"I have every right to be here," Malfoy barked, crossing his arms defiantly. "Besides, what are you going to do about it?" Annabeth clenched her fists tightly, her stormy grey eyes filling with hatred. She brought one hand to her hip and rested her fingertips on her belt. Hermione could have sworn she saw a bronze dagger at her hip, but it seemed to disappeared moment later. She must've imagined it.

"I can't... now," she whispered menacingly. Fear flickered across Malfoy's face.

"We'll see about that," he said, the slightest tremble in his voice. Annabeth had the "death glare" down pat. Even Malfoy couldn't reason to the dark look in her eyes. He let out a huffy breath and stormed out of the shop.

"Annabeth, you are now my idol," Ginny said in amazement. Annabeth shrugged as a small smile twitched at the corner of her lips.

"He seems like a jerk. I assume he deserved it," she said simply.

"He did," Hermione nodded in agreement.

They finished collecting three copies of each book on the supply list and approached the clerk. As Annabeth paid, Hermione continued browsing through the store leisurely, her fingers brushing along the spines of each book, resting for only seconds to inspect a specific one. Once Annabeth had paid, the three girls exited the shop, their arms full.

"Should we find Grover and Percy now?" Annabeth asked.

"Yes, then we'll go see Olivander and pick up your robes," Hermione said. Annabeth grimaced slightly at the mention of her robes.

"Why don't you like skirts? I mean, the uniform isn't the most fashion forward, but they aren't horrible," Ginny said.

"How am I supposed to fight wearing a skirt?" Annabeth questioned. Hermione and Ginny exchanged confused looks.

"All you have to do is flick your wand," Hermione said slowly. Annabeth looked down at her feet and muttered something in a strange language. _Is she speaking Greek? _Hermione wondered.

Over the summer, Hermione had become extremely fascinated with Greek myths, so naturally, she picked up a few things on Greek culture as well. She had learnt a few simple words, as well as memorized the alphabet.

"Oh... sorry... inside joke," Annabeth murmured. "I just don't like skirts," she said simply.

"Good thing we don't have to play Quidditch in them," Ginny joked. Hermione chuckled softly, whereas Annabeth looked totally lost. Before Hermione could say anything to her, Ginny extended her hand and pointed towards Fred and George's joke shop.

"Here we are," Hermione said as they approached the joke shop. The twins had recently repainted the "Weasley's Wizard Wheezes" sign a bright orange colour.

Annabeth stared up at the building and murmured something about the structure of it before walking in, The store, as usual, was buzzing with life. Little flying contraptions buzzed around the girls heads. Boxes flew along the ceiling, unpacking themselves at various displays.

"Welcome to Weasley's Wizard Wheezes!" two identical voices echoed across the store.

"New shipment of Extendable Ears, aisle five," Fred called.

"More purple and pink Pygmy Puffs too. What a tongue twister," George continued.

"And we have a new batch of Love Potions, fresh out of the cauldron!" Fred yelled. "Yes ladies, we are, surprisingly, still single,"

"Oh! Look at who dropped by Freddie!" George exclaimed. Hermione looked around for the twins, but they were nowhere to be found.

"It's our dear sister! Ginny dear! How delightful! Dean Thomas was just in here but fifteen minutes ago asking for you," Fred laughed. Ginny's face turned as red as her hair.

"Brothers," she mumbled and stalked off to find them.

"Those are her brothers?"

"Two of them," Hermione said. "Never accept any sort of gift from them, trust me,"

Suddenly, there was a large explosion from the back of the store. Annabeth and Hermione whipped around.

"And those would be the Wildfire Whiz-bangs," George squeaked.

A dragon made out of fireworks blasted through the shop and came barreling towards Annabeth and Hermione.


	7. Chapter VII: Harry

**Thanks ninjas4evs for telling me which POV I should write this chapter in! And everyone else for the ideas and support, a big thanks!**

**_Harry_**

Harry, Ron, Grover, and Percy said good bye to the girls and began their walk towards Fred and George's joke shop.

"So, where are we going again?" Percy asked.

"My brother's joke shop," Ron said, digging into his pocket. "They still make me pay full price though," he grumbled, pulling out a few coins and counting them out. "They sell all sorts of gag items. Firecrackers, Extendable ears, potions and candies to make you puke, belch, sneeze-almost anything. Real gits they are,"

"I bet the Travis and Connor would _love_ that," Percy said to Grover, smiling widely Grover let out a strange, choppy laugh, and clamped a hand over his mouth.

"Probably better they don't visit," Grover said. "They'd steal half the stock within ten minutes," Harry and Ron exchanged confused looks.

"So, what's your school like?" Harry asked casually.

"It's just like any other wizarding school," Percy shrugged.

"Oh hey, let's pop into the Quality Quidditch Supplies!" Ron exclaimed as they passed the store.

"Quidditch?" Grover questioned. Harry and Ron looked at the Americans with disbelief.

"You don't know what Quidditch is?" Harry exclaimed. The shook their heads.

"It's only the best game in the whole world!" Ron exclaimed.

"How do you play?" Percy asked.

"Well, there are seven players on each team; three Chasers, two Beaters, one Seeker-that's Harry's position- and one Keeper. The Chasers score goals by throwing the Quaffle into the other teams goalposts, the Beaters protect their team from Bludgers and pound the other team with them, the Keeper blocks the other team from getting points, and the Seeker catches the Golden Snitch. Each goal is worth ten points, and the Snitch is worth 150 points. If you catch the snitch, the game is over," Ron explained.

"Why are there brooms in the window?" Grover asked.

Harry was about to explain how the brooms were enchanted to fly, but someone crashed into him before he was able to say anything.

Harry stumbled backwards. He would've fallen over had Percy not been standing right behind him and steadied him.

"Hey, watch where you're going, Potter," Malfoy snapped at him, leaping up from the ground.

"Com on, let's go," Harry said to Ron, Percy, and Grover.

"Go ahead then, run along," Malfoy sneered. Harry clenched his fists tightly and pushed past Malfoy. He wished he could whip out his wand and Stupefy the slime bag, but Malfoy definitely wasn't worth expulsion.

"Who was that?" Grover asked nervously.

"Draco Malfoy. He's in Slytherin," Ron growled.

"Slytherin?" Grover and Percy asked simultaneously.

"One of the houses. There's four houses. Slytherin is cunning, Ravenclaw is smart, Hufflepuff is loyal, and Gryffindor is brave,"

"_And_ the best house of all!" Ron added, pumping his fist in the air and laughing triumphantly.

"There has never been a dark wizard who didn't come out of Slytherin," Harry continued.

"So they're all evil?" Grover asked, pulling his hat over his ears nervously.

"Yes," Ron said.

"No," Harry countered. "Not all of them are evil, its just that all evil wizards have been in that house, like You-Know-Who," he said, lowering his voice.

"You-Know-Who?" Percy questioned. "Oh, you mean that Moldyvort guy,"

"Switch the 'M' and the 'V', mate," Ron whispered. Percy paused for a moment, frowning. Then, a look of understanding passed over his face.

"Voldemort!" he exclaimed. Harry winced and looked around. A few witches and wizards who had heard the name were staring at them strangely.

"Don't say his name," Ron said sharply. "It's _jinxed_," Percy and Grover exchanged confused looks.

The Americans seemed to be getting stranger and stranger. They seemed completely oblivious to anything related to the magical world. Admittedly, Harry was a bit surprised when none of them made any comment on the whole "Chosen One" or "Boy Who Lived" thing. Maybe his fame hadn't reached America.

"Here we are!" Ron said, bringing him back to reality.

Harry looked up at the joke shop and smiled. Two years ago, when he had won the Triwizard Tournament, he had given the reward to Fred and George so they could open their shop. Seeing their dream come alive, and knowing he played a part in making it a reality, made Harry feel great.

"Alright! Let's go in," Percy said excitedly.

They entered the extravagant shop and took in the sights. It was packed with young witches and wizards, and a few uncomfortable looking adults. Fred and George's voice echoed throughout the store, announcing new stock and reading out warning labels.

"Candy, candy, and more candy, charmed for every occasion. Give one to your arch rival and watch him blow chunks!" Fred said. Or maybe it was George

"Or, you could just dangle one of Ron's dirty socks in front of their face, that works too!" the other called. Ron scowled and looked around the store for his brothers.

"Shop goers, we are in the presence of a living legend! It is none other than Harry Potter!"

"The Boy Who Lived!"

"The Chosen One"

"And the founder of this joke shop!"

"A big round of applause everyone!" Quiet applause rippled across the room. As he walked, some people came up to Harry and gave him a pat on the back.

"What do they mean by 'Chosen One'?" Percy asked. Harry laughed nervously and rubbed his neck.

"Uh, prophecy business," he said.

"I know how you feel," Percy sighed, putting a hand Harry's shoulder.

"You do?" Harry asked in disbelief. Percy looked like he was about to say something, but he clamped his mouth shut before any words escaped his lips.

"Well, I wasn't part of any prophecy or anything, but I know what it feels like to have a lot of people counting on you," Percy said, a serious expression passing across his face.

"Harry! Our favourite little hero," George said. Or was it Fred... Harry could almost never tell the difference, especially today

"Pick up the foreigners yet?" the other asked.

"Yeah, this is Percy, and this is Grover," Harry said, pointing to each of the boys in turn.

"Why hello there! I'm Fred," he said.

"And I'm George," the other said.

"Hey," Percy said, waving his hand slightly. Grover smiled nervously.

"Isn't there another?"

"Oh right, Annabeth. She's something," Ron said, sighing dreamily. Percy's eyes widened and he stood tall. Grover stifled a laugh and walked over to Ron. He said something in a low voice and Ron's face reddened.

"Sorry Percy, I didn't mean... um..." Ron blushed even more. Harry felt confused.

"Uh... what's going on?" Harry asked.

"Well... Annabeth and I have been going out for a while now," Percy said. Ron looked at the floor uneasily, still blushing. Harry and Grover, being impartial third and fourth parties, felt absolutely no shame in breaking down in tears of laughter.

"Well, we have the brightest little brother, don't we Fred,"

"Yes we do, George,"

"Shut up," Ron grumbled as he turned to a display rack.

"Blimey, Ron! Stop touching the BBEFBs!" Fred yelled, swatting his brother's hand.

"BBEFBs?" Grover asked.

"Berty Bots Every Flavour Beans," George said. "Cherry flavour, bogey flavour, chocolate flavour, foot flavour, aluminum... everything!"

"Remind me not to taste one of those... ever," Percy murmured.

"You're kidding, right? They have aluminum flavour, Perce!" Grover exclaimed. Harry frowned. _Aluminum?_

"Ron, why don't you show these two around the shop," Fred said, clapping his brother on the back.

"Why don't you?" Ron asked.

"If you do, we'll drop the cost of that pack of Extendable Ears you just took," George said.

"They're terribly overpriced," Ron muttered, motioning for Percy and Grover to follow him. Harry walked behind them, not really paying attention to what Ron was saying about the inventory.

When they reached the back of the store, Ron stopped and spread his arms.

"And now, our last stop; the Weasley Wildfire Whiz-bangs," he said, clapping his hands together. "Unstoppable fire works, lots of lights and explosions. Don't make the mistake of trying to stop them, it makes them even more powerful. Oh, and don't set them off in an enclosed space. And that's pretty much it, or at least all I feel like talking about,"

"Great job Ron," Harry said.

George and Fred's identical voices blared through the store once more.

"Welcome to Weasley's Wizard Wheezes!"

"New shipment of Extendable Ears, aisle five," Fred called.

"More purple and pink Pygmy Puffs too. What a tongue twister," George continued.

"And we have a new batch of Love Potions, fresh out of the cauldron!" Fred yelled. "Yes ladies, we are, surprisingly, still single,"

"Oh! Look at who dropped by Freddie!" George exclaimed.

"It's our dear sister! Ginny dear! How delightful!" Fred said. Harry's head snapped up. "Dean Thomas was just in here but fifteen minutes ago asking for you," Fred laughed.

Harry's mind stared to spin. Why did Dean Thomas want to see Ginny. Harry, distracted by his thoughts, tripped over a box carelessly left on the floor.

"Careful Harry," Ron said, holding out his hand. As Harry reached up to take his friend's hand, there were a series of unfortunate events, in an order that went something like this.

Harry knocks over a whole stack of Wildfire Whiz-bangs

Some unknown object flew through the air, knocking a poorly placed lamp over.

Things caught fire.

Explosion.

A dragon made of fireworks bust through the store

George said: "And those would be the Wildfire Whiz-bangs,"

Screams.

**So, I hope you liked this chapter, and I have a quick question.**

**I'm thinking of writing a How to Train Your DragonxBrave crossover where Hiccup (now 15, though still as nerdy), in order to stabilize an alliance between Berk and Merida's clan, is being forced into marriage. But, Merida isn't ready to be tied down, and Hiccup wants to be with Astrid. They team up to make their parents see that forcing them into marriage isn't the way to obtain peace.**

**So, tell me what you think: Good idea or bad?**


	8. Chapter VIII: Percy

**I'm worried I'm turning into an insomniac... well, I don't have school tomorrow anyways! So, I hope you like the latest instalment. I'll admit, I was kinda rushing this chapter because next is the train ride and I'm sooo excited because I'm planning on Luna coming in and showing them all the Quibbler and etc. (I LOVE LUNA!) so I hope you understand why it may seem... I son't know, forced? But, I am especially critical of my own work so *shrug*.**

**Also, I've gotten quite a bit of good feedback about the HTTYD/Brave crossover so I wrote 1 1/2 chapters from Hiccup's POV. I don't know if I'm going to post it until I finish this one, but I'll be able to update it quickly when I do start because I'll have a head start. So, if you want to read that, then put me on your Author subscription list!**

**Here goes nothing!**

**p.s. Grover has the same wand as me (Pottermore :D)**

**_Percy_**

Percy's training instincts kicked in. He ducked down to avoid being attacked by one of the creepy dragons, pulling Grover to the floor with him. Several of the older store goers whipped out wooden sticks and yelled strange words. The dragon just exploded and multiplied with each burst of light from one of the sticks.

From across the store, Percy spotted Annabeth standing with the bushy haired girl, Hermione. His stomach did a somersault as he spotted one of the dragons crashing through the store towards them. Luckily, Annabeth crouched down to avoid it, taking Hermione with her.

Percy looked around the store. People screamed and ran around, trying to get out of the store.

"Get down onto the ground!" Percy shouted. Ron and Harry dropped to the floor.

"How do you stop those things?" Percy asked Ron.

"No magic can!"

"How else can we stop it?" he asked.

"Water. Lots of it,"

Percy nodded and looked around the store for any source of water he could control. He glanced up at the ceiling and noticed a channel of pipes running along the ceiling. He concentrated on the water flowing through them and concentrated the pressure to one point until the pipe burst open.

Water rained over the entire store, soaking everyone and the dragons. They writhed under the water, a deafening, crackling noise echoing around the room. Within minutes, all that was left of the fireworks were a few weak sparks flickering on the floor.

Percy let out a sigh of relief and picked himself up off the ground, looking around for where Annabeth had disappeared to.

"Ron! What was that?" one of the twins shouted as he and his twin ran up to them.

"I don't know, something just set it off!" Ron said defensively, wiping water from his face.

"Well it'll be you to gather the volunteers to clean up the mess," the other snapped, folding his arms across his chest. The twins turned and pulled out two sticks of there own.

"Reparo!" they said in unison. A pile of broken bottles mended themselves and leaped back up to the shelf.

"Did you see that?" Percy whispered to Grover in disbelief. He nodded, his eyes wide with both fear and amazement.

"Well, that was terrible," Ron muttered angrily before setting off to look for people to help clean up the mess.

"Harry! Are you alright?" Ginny asked, joining the group at the back of the shop.

"Yeah, you?" Harry asked.

"Well, aside from being soaked, I'm alright," she replied. Hermione and Annabeth ran up and joined in the conversation. The carried stacks of books in their arms. Annabeth's face was pale, causing Percy to worry. If she was nervous, Percy aught to be as well.

"What on earth happened?" she asked. Harry blushed slightly.

"Well, I knocked over a pile of the Whiz-bangs and something set them off," he admitted shyly.

"This is horrible. My stuff is soaked," Grover said sadly, examining his bag.

"Hey, Wise Girl," Percy said. "You okay?" Annabeth looked at him with nervous eyes.

"I'll tell you later," she said, glancing at the others.

Suddenly, one of the twins voices echoed around the shop again. "Sorry about that everyone!"

"If you are of age, please help us fix any broken items you see," the other said.

"All complaints can be directed to Ronald Weasley. The boy with red hair and freckles and the unfortunate green shirt,"

From somewhere in the store, Ron let out a loud "Oh, come on!"

All around the store, repairs were being made. The pipe was mended, displays were placed upright, and within five or so minutes, the shop looked the same as it had before a rampaging firework dragon destroyed it.

"Thank you all very much! Everyone who helped out gets a fifteen percent discount on any item in the store!" one of the twins shouted once the repairs were made.

"I only hope our books dry off," Hermione said, flipping through the damp pages.

"I vote we get out of here," Ron said as he returned to the group. "Before Fred and George give me more work to do,"

No one protested and they all filed out onto the streets.

"Well, why don't we go into Olivander's now?" Hermione suggested.

"Hermione, an exploding fire cracker dragon almost killed you five minutes ago. How can you possibly be focused on shopping for supplies?" Ron questioned.

"Because, Ron, school is important," she said, jutting her chin out. "To Olivander's?"

Olivander's was a very old, poorly lit store with row upon row of shelves, lined with boxes. Percy felt uncomfortable being in there.

"Hello? Who's there?" an old voice called out from the back of the shop.

"Mr. Olivander, there are some students here who need to speak with you," Hermione called out. An old man came forwards from the shadows. He had long grey hair and wore strange clothes that looked somewhat like pajamas and a bathrobe to Percy.

"Oh, yes. The Americans from the camp," he said. Percy was startled. How did he know?

"School," Annabeth corrected him, glancing nervously at Hermione. A small smile twitched at the old man's mouth.

"My mistake. I have wands for you," he said.

"Wands? Don't you already have?" Harry asked. Percy only shrugged in reply.

"Now, Percy," Mr. Olivander said, going behind his desk and placing three boxes on the counter. Each had writing on them. Though Percy couldn't read it, he assumed they were there names. "Thirteen inches, driftwood, with a unicorn tail as the core," he said, holding out the box. Percy took it and opened it to reveal a thin, finely crafted stick. _Wand_, he reminded himself. At the thicker end, small waves were carved in a spiral down the sides.

"Annabeth," he said, pushing the second box forwards. "Eleven inches, elm, owl feather core," Annabeth stepped forwards and took her wand from the box. It looked similar to Percy's, except the base was thicker and instead of waves, Greek writing was carved along the side. It read _"You hold a blessing of Hecate. Use it wisely"_

"And finally, Grover," Mr. Olivander said, gesturing to the final box. Grover took a nervous step forwards. "Twelve and one quarter inches, chestnut, with a Phoenix feather core," Grover took the wand from the box. His was bent slightly, with a thick base with two wooden rings three quarters of the way down. The entire base was decorated with finely carved leaves and vines.

"Not quite the same core as yours, Harry, I assure you," Mr. Olivander added. Percy frowned, wondering why that might be a problem.

"Thanks so much, Mr. Olivander," Annabeth said.

"Thank you!" Grover said. Percy mumbled a thanks as well, though he was still studying his wand.

"Shall we pick up your robes then?" Hermione said, already halfway out of the door.

They walked over to Madam Malkin's to pick up their robes, much to Annabeth's dismay. Percy didn't see the problem. He thought she looked cute in her uniform.

"Ginny, where's mum?" Ron asked his sister. "I didn't finish packing my stuff yet,"

"Oh, Ron," Hermione sighed, shaking her head, though Ron payed little attention.

"I left her by the Apothecary," Ginny replied, pointing over to one of the stores that lined the streets. Sure enough, standing beside the door was a redheaded woman dressed in a long purple skirt with a shawl around her shoulders. When she spotted the group she smiled and waved them over.

"There you lot are," she said. "My goodness! Why are you all so wet?" Percy looked at Annabeth and realized her clothes and hair were wet. Same with Grover, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny.

"There was an accident in the joke shop. Whiz-bangs set off and someone burst the pipes to extinguish it," Ginny said.

"Oh dear," she sighed. "Well, you certainly are lucky you avoided the water," she said, motioning to Percy. Harry looked down at his own clothes to see them completely dry.

"Oh, yeah well... I guess I was underneath a ledge or something," Percy mumbled.

"Oh, how rude of me, I haven't introduced myself. I'm Molly. Molly Weasley," she said, holding out her hand. Annabeth took the initiative to step forwards and shake Molly's hand.

"I'm Annabeth, this is Percy, and this is Grover," she said, pointing to each one of them in turn.

"Well, it's a pleasure to have you stay with us," she said sweetly. "We aught to be going now, if you have all your things," Annabeth nodded. "Right then, everyone, come close now," she said.

Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny all joined hands with one another. Ginny held out her hand to Annabeth. Percy was confused. Were they going to skip down a yellow brick road or something? Grover would eat the Scarecrow and the Tinman.

"Have you ever apparated before?" Molly asked. Percy, Grover, and Annabeth exchanged some confused looks and shook their heads. "Right then. All you have to do is join hands and I'll do the work. Hold tight, okay?" she said.

Annabeth held Ginny's hand, Percy held Annabeth and Grover's hands, and Mrs. Weasley grabbed Grover's other hand.

"Ready?" Molly said.

"For what?" Percy asked. Suddenly, a strange feeling flooded through his body. His stomach turned upside down and he almost spewed chunks all over Ron who was directly across from him.

His vision blurred, and when he finally regained his sight, he saw he had been transported to an entirely different place. They stood in the center of a cosy living room. Grover tore his hand away from Percy's and ran outside the door. Light poured into the dark room. From inside, Percy could hear Grover throwing up.

"Well, that went rather well," Molly said, smiling and walking out of the room with a bounce in her step.

**WHOSE POV NEXT?**


	9. Chapter IX: Grover

**Yay updates! Also, yay for bad goat humor (you'll see). I put it in italics for effect... :D**

**P.S. I didn't do too much editing, so sorry if there are any errors.**

**_Grover_**

Grover decided he hated apparition. It had been almost half an hour since they arrived at the Burrow, the Weasley's house, and he still felt sick. He sat on the couch, clutching a glass of water in his hand and taking small sips. All he really wanted, however, was a nice aluminum can to chew on.

"Are you okay, dear?" Mrs. Weasley asked, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"I-I'm good," he said, not looking at her directly.

"Well, if you feel ready for some lunch, let me know," she said before leaving Grover alone in the room. Everyone else was finishing off their lunches. Every few minutes, Percy or Annabeth would poke their heads in the room and ask if he was alright.

_Grover decided to lie down and see if he could take a quick cat nap... or, goat nap._

He downed the last bit of his water and put the glass on the short table in front of him. He lay down on the couch, pulling his hat snugly over his ears. This didn't stop him from hearing the British wizards talking to each other about Percy, Annabeth, and him.

"...so strange. Have you seen Grover's arms? He's as hairy as Hagrid," Ron hissed.

"And why didn't they have wands beforehand? It makes no sense at all," Hermione replied in a whisper.

"They _seem _nice enough," Ginny said.

"And why wasn't Percy soaked like the rest of us?" Harry questioned. Grover shifted on the couch uncomfortably, hoping that they would stop talking about them, realizing he was there.

"Uh... Grover's on the couch," Ginny whispered quietly.

"Let's go upstairs," Harry said. Grover heard their footsteps disappearing upstairs.

Once he was sure they were gone, Grover shot up and ran into the dining room, his nausea leaving him for fear.

"Guys! They're getting suspicious," Grover whisper-screamed. Percy and Annabeth, who were still sitting on the table, looked up abruptly from their conversation.

"What do you mean?" Annabeth asked, turning to face Grover.

"I heard them talking about how you were dry and why we didn't have wands already, and why I'm so hairy," Grover explained in a hushed tone. Percy stifled a laugh at that last one. "It's not funny!" Grover complained. "Chiron said we couldn't reveal ourselves at any cost,"

"Sorry, you're right, this is a really serious hair issue," Percy said, suppressing a smile. Annabeth rolled her eyes at him.

"I agree with Grover, we have to be more careful," Annabeth said. "Especially because-" she stopped abruptly, her face paling. Grover thought maybe someone was listening to their conversation, but when he turned around, there was no one there.

"What's wrong?" Grover asked. Annabeth shook her head quickly and waved her hand in a "I don't want to talk about it" fashion.

"Wise Girl," Percy said in a slightly condescending tone. Annabeth sighed and relented.

"When Ginny, Hermione, and I were in one of the stores, I saw... I think... I think I saw the Fates," she said in a low voice. Percy's eyes filled with concern.

"What do you mean? What did they do?" he asked.

"They were holding two strings... but they didn't cut either of them. They kept almost cutting them, but then stopping, like they weren't sure if those two people were going to die yet. They were... they were looking at me," Annabeth said slowly. Her stormy grey eyes were focused on the floor, flickering back in forth as if observing some giant map.

"That may not mean anything," Percy said comfortingly. "Remember when the Fates appeared when we were twelve, and I thought they were cutting my string, but it wasn't,"

"Yeah! And anyways, you said they didn't cut the strings, right? So that means whosever strings those are, they may not... you know..." Grover said. Annabeth looked up and smiled slightly, seemingly comforted by Grover and Percy's words.

"You're right. Besides, it's the first day of school tomorrow. We have much more important things to worry about right now," Annabeth said.

The rest of the day passed by in a blur. Grover learnt a lot about Hogwarts. He discovered that they received mail by owls, was taught about the House Cup, and the Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers that never stayed longer than a year for various reasons.

But soon enough, the next morning arrived, and Grover was feeling as sick as the day before. Much to his dismay, they did have to apparate to get to the train station for Hogwarts. He managed to keep himself from losing his breakfast all over the floor of King's Cross Station.

Grover was actually beginning to get used to the surprises that the magical world was throwing at him. Unfortunately, there was one he wasn't expecting.

"You want us to do what?!" Grover exclaimed.

"Run through that wall," Ron's father, Arthur Weasley said. Both he and Molly had come to see them off at the station.

They stood in front of the wall in between platform 9 and 10. Grover clutched the straps of his bag to his chest. Harry, Ron, and Hermione had carts carrying all their stuff, whereas Annabeth, Percy, and Grover had large duffel bags instead.

On Harry's cart sat a snowy white owl named Hedwig who Grover quite enjoyed talking to.

_It's fine, trust me. I get taken through every year. It's not as scary as it looks,_ Hedwig told him. Grover chewed the inside of his cheek nervously, still unsure of what to do. He looked at Percy who was staring at the wall with an unsure look as if deciding whether it was dangerous or not.

"Watch me," Hermione said. She positioned herself directly in front of the wall and ran towards it. Grover let out a small yelp as she made impact, but instead of crashing, like if she was running at any normal brick wall, she seemed to go right through it and disappear.

"Whoa!" Percy said, his widening.

Harry and Ron followed Hermione through the wall, disappearing as they touched the bricks. Percy grinned wildly and stepped up to the wall. He took a breath and then ran through it.

"Come on Grover, it's now or never," Annabeth said, grabbing his arm and pulling him through the wall. Grover let out a short yelp and shut his eyes as he came in contact with the wall.

"Is it over?" he squeaked, his eyes still closed tightly. "Have I been smushed?"

"Dude, you're fine," Percy said, clapping a hand on his friend's shoulder. Grover opened his eyes slowly.

They were standing by another platform, a large steam engine on the track beside them that read "Hogwarts Express" On the platform sign, "93/4" was written in white letters. Grover touched the wall behind him. Solid.

Suddenly, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley appeared beside him, making him jump.

"Come on now, don't dawdle, on the train," Molly said, pushing them towards the train. They exchanged a few quick good-byes with the two adults before getting on the train with Ron, Harry, Hermione, and Ginny.

Ginny left them to sit in a compartment with a few of her friends, leaving the other six in a compartment of their own.

The wizards and demigods sat across from each other. There was a long pause as the train started up. Grover adjusted his hat and shifted in his seat uncomfortably.

"Grover, stop fidgeting," Annabeth said tiredly.

"Annabeth, did you sleep alright?" Hermione asked. "I woke up for a minute very early and you weren't in your bed," All three of the girls had to share a room the night before.

"Oh, I just had a lot on my mind, I guess," she murmured. Over Annabeth's head, Percy and Grover shared a knowing look. Annabeth hadn't stopped worrying about the Fates, despite their attempts to comfort her.

"Why don't you try to get some sleep then," Percy suggested. Annabeth was about to protest, but Percy shushed her. "Just take a nap, Wise Girl," he insisted, putting an arm around her.

Annabeth gave in and shifted around so her feet were curled underneath her and she was leaning on Percy. Within minutes, she was fast asleep.

Percy looked down at Annabeth with a small smile. Though he had been absent for a while, Grover assumed the new couple were getting along fine. For years, Grover had known Percy had feelings for Annabeth, and that was even before Percy knew himself.

"Oh, Hermione, my glasses. Could you fix them?" Harry said, taking off his glasses and handing them to Hermione. She took out a wand of her own and pointed them at the broken frame.

"_Oculus Reparo_," she said clearly. The tape around the bridge of the glasses fell off, leaving the frame looking brand new.

Suddenly, there was a soft knock on the compartment door. Grover looked up to see a girl with long, dirty blonde hair down to her waist. She was carrying a stack of brightly coloured magazines and was wearing coloured glasses that made her look like an owl. She placed her glasses on top of her head, revealing a pair of silvery grey eyes and pale eyebrows. She slid the compartment doors and smiled, seeming slightly dazed.

"Are there any wrackspurts in here?" she asked.

"Luna, what exactly are you wearing?" Ron asked with slight distaste in his tone. Hermione rolled her eyes and stood up to give Luna a quick hug.

"They're Spectrespecs. There are free pairs in this months _Quibbler_," she said in reply to Ron's question, holding up a copy of one of the magazines.

"Hello, who are you?" she asked Grover and Percy.

"I'm Percy and this is Grover," Percy said, waving slightly. "Oh, and this is Annabeth," he added, pointing to her.

"Oh, are you exchange students?" she asked. Grover was surprised at how she knew that.

"Yeah," Percy said slowly. "From America,"

"Well, that's nice. Would you like a copy?" she asked, holding out one of the magazines. Grover took a copy, more to be nice than because he was particularly interested in the content.

"Well, I should get going. More Spectrespecs to give out. I'll see you later. Maybe we'll take one of the carriages together," she said in the same dreamy tone. She left the compartment, sliding the door closed behind her.

"Well, that's Luna for you," Ron said, mostly to himself.

"What is _the Quibbler_, exactly?" Percy asked.

"It's a magazine. Luna's father is the editor," Hermione explained.

Grover scanned the cover. In the bottom left corner was a rather unsettling caption. "You-Know-Who's Reign of Terror" Grover bit his lip nervously and put the magazine down. He was going to put off anything having to do with that subject matter for as long as he could.

**I know, not the best chapter end, sorry.**

**Quick acknowledgements: thanks to LuLuLucian444 for suggesting Grover's POV for this chapter, and to Haley Renee who recommended I write Hermione next. That'll be coming up next! And, of course, a huge thanks to everyone who is reading this right now! It makes my day whenever I get a new review or story follower! :)**

**Also, comment for more bad goat humor! XD **_I'm so not funny..._


	10. Chapter X: Hermione

**To whom it may concern,**

**I'm really happy that you enjoyed my goat humor! Thanks all you people!**

**Lots of Love,**

**flabbergastedbaboom**

**_Hermione_**

Hermione was not thrilled when Harry and Ron left the compartment to find Neville. They wouldn't say why they wanted to find him, just that they needed to and walked away. That left her alone with the three American exchange students.

They weren't exactly mean, but were always acting so suspiciously. Just a few example; Percy had miraculously dried off after the Whiz-bangs incident, they didn't have wands, Grover slept in a hat and put on his shoes under the covers (Ron's information from having to share a room with him) and they seemed to know nothing about Hogwarts, Harry, or Voldemort.

Hermione may have felt a bit better if Annabeth was awake, but she had been asleep for almost the entire train ride. The longest she was awake for was when they all changed into their robes. Percy had nodded off a couple times as well, though she assumed that was the time change. Grover, however, was awake the whole time.

Though she didn't particularly like being alone with the American wizards, she decided it could be a good chance to find out more about who they actually were.

"So, what's your favourite subject?" Hermione asked the boys.

"Oh... well, I like plants and stuff," Grover said slowly.

"So, herbology then?" Hermione said. Grover raised his eyebrows, as if surprised a subject solely on the topic of plants even existed.

"Yeah, that," he said slowly.

"And you, Percy?"

"Well, what's not to like really? Everything's pretty cool," he said vaguely. Hermione narrowed her eyes in annoyance.

_How specific_, she thought, slumping back on the compartment bench.

Ron and Harry _finally_ came back from their little expedition, much to Hermione's relief, and sat down on either side of her.

"Neville says hi, Hermione," Harry said.

Ron glanced across at the Americans with distaste. He had convinced himself the exchange students were recruited by Voldemort to help the Death Eaters infiltrate Hogwarts. Hermione knew there was something strange about them, but they couldn't be Death Eaters, could they?

There was a long pause.

"So... what's your school like?" Hermione pressed on, deciding she needed to find out more about the exchange students.

"It's good," Percy said nonchalantly. Hermione was really beginning to get annoyed with his vagueness.

"Where is it?"

"Long Island, New York," Grover chimed in. Percy shot him a warning look, but said nothing about it. Instead, he changed the subject. Hermione made a mental note to find a book of wizarding schools around the world to read more.

"How long until we get there?" Percy asked, turning his attention back to Hermione.

"Not long. Five minutes maybe?" she estimated. More silence. Ron shifted behind Hermione, accidentally elbowing her hip.

"Ouch, Ron!" she exclaimed, leaning away from him.

"Sorry, sorry," he said. He reached into his pocket and retrieved a small bag of _Berty Botts Every Flavour Beans_.

"What do you say, Harry? Care to try one?" Ron asked, holding out the bag. Harry pursed his lips, considering it for a moment, but then decided against it.

"Last time I tried, I got rotten egg," he said, shaking his head.

"What are they?" Percy asked. Ron smiled devilishly and held out the bag.

"Try one," he said. Percy frowned skeptically and reached into the bag, extracting a purple bean. He studied it for a moment before throwing it in his mouth.

"Grape flavour," Percy said after a moment. Ron seemed disappointed that Percy had gotten a pleasant tasting candy.

"Oh, can I try?" Grover asked. Ron tossed him the bag, causing a few to spill out on the floor of the compartment. Grover shoved his hand in the bag and pulled out a grey-white bean. He threw it in his mouth and chewed carefully.

"Aluminum..." Grover said slowly. Ron's mood lightened and he began laughing. However, he didn't notice the smile creeping across Grover's face as he dug down in the bag and pulled out another identical bean and ate it gratefully.

The train began to slow to a stop. There was a loud screech and the train began to shake slightly as it curved into the station. Annabeth jerked her head up suddenly. Her hand shot to her hip, just like it did when Malfoy was bothering them at the book store.

"What's happening?" she asked groggily.

"We're here," Percy said. Annabeth sat up and let out a deep breath. She brushed her blonde, curly hair out of her face and pulled it up into a ponytail. She straightened out her skirt while mumbling "Stupid uniform" and yawning.

All six of them stood up and walked out of the compartment. The train was flooding with students of all ages. Hermione noticed a few especially nervous looking first years getting lost in the crowd.

After much elbowing, they finally managed to push their way out of the train and onto the platform. As they walked towards the carriages, many people glanced at the exchange students. A group of fourth-year girls giggled and looked over at Percy. Hermione had to admit, Percy was very attractive, but she better than to draw attention to her opinions. After seeing how Annabeth had spoken to Malfoy the day before, she had made a decision not to get on her bad side.

They arrived at the carriages that, though seemingly moved by themselves, were pulled by Thestrals, horse like creatures that could only be seen by someone who had watched someone die. Fortunately, Hermione wasn't able to see them.

"What are those?" Grover asked.

"They look like some real creepy Pegasi," Percy said. _Pegasi..._ Hermione thought. All three of them were staring at a blank space in front of one of the carriages.

"Those are Thestrals," Harry said.

"You can see them?" Hermione asked in disbelief.

"Yeah," Annabeth said slowly. "Why wouldn't we be able to?" she wondered.

"You can only see Thestrals if you've seen someone die," Luna said, appearing out of no where. "It's ironic that such beautiful creatures can represent such sad events,"

Hermione looked at the Americans, there expressions suddenly solemn. Percy laced his finger through Annabeth's, who looked like she was struggling not to cry. Grover stared at his feet and rubbed his arm.

"Come on, let's go," Percy said darkly, climbing into one of the carriages.

"What was that about?" Ron wondered.

"Oh Ron, they've obviously lost someone recently," Luna said. "It's quite sad. Well, we should get going. May I ride in your carriage?" she asked.

"Of course," I said before climbing into the carriage. The three exchange students were sitting on one side of the carriage. Luna, Ron, Harry, and Hermione piled into the carriage and sat the opposite side of them.

Percy had a hardened expression. Annabeth stared at the floor with a small crease in between her eyebrows. Grover sniffled as his eyes darted nervously around the compartment.

No one said a word until the carriage started moving.

"If you don't mind me asking, why do you see the Thestrals?" Luna asked.

"It's like you said. When we've seen someone die," Percy said sharply.

"I lost my mother," Luna said.

"I'm sorry," Annabeth said.

"Harry can see them too, can't you Harry?" Luna continued, looking at him. Harry shifted uncomfortably and nodded. There was another long pause.

"We lost a close friend a little while ago," Annabeth said softly after a while, not lifting her eyes.

The carriage suddenly jostled a bit, and Grover fell out of his seat. There was a moment of hesitation before Percy, Annabeth, and Grover all burst out laughing.

"Are you alright?" Luna asked. Grover nodded and scrambled back into his chair.

A small smile still on her face, Annabeth looked outside the window and gasped.

"Oh my gods!" she said in a whisper, grabbing Percy's wrist. Percy slipped his hand in his pocket and pulled out a pen. _Odd,_ Hermione thought. _Why would he need a pen? We use quills here._

"What is it?" Percy asked in a tight voice.

"Calm down and just look," she said. Percy stuffed his pen back in his pocket. Hermione glanced out the window at Hogwarts. "Isn't it amazing? Look at the spires. I've seen enough Greek columns over the past week to last a life time. It's so great to see something else for a change,"

"Greek columns?" Hermione asked aloud. Annabeth paused for a second, looking at Hermione with a dazed expression.

"Yeah, I was in an architecture program over the summer," she murmured, turning back to the window.

"The inside is even more amazing," Luna said airily, looking outside the carriage.

As we came closer and closer to the castle, Annabeth's excitement grew as she pointed out new detail of the castle.

"Who was the architect?" Annabeth asked. Suddenly, the carriage stopped and, once again, Grover flew out of his seat.

"Seriously? Again?" Grover exclaimed in disbelief. He stood up and brushed off his pants, grumbling something inaudible.

"Shall we go?" Luna said, standing up. They all followed her out of the carriage and towards the large castle that, to Hermione, felt like a second home.

They in the building towards the Great Hall, when Professor McGonagall approached them.

"Hello there,"

"Hi Professor McGonagall!" Hermione said warmly. Ron and Harry murmured a few weak "Hello"s.

"Oh, hello Miss Granger, Mr. Weasley, Mr. Potter" she said, nodding towards them.

"Professor, I'm sorry to tell you but I believe there are Nargles in the castle," Luna said in a low voice. Professor McGonagall tilted her head and pursed her lips into a small, doubtful smile.

"Thank you for the information, Miss Lovegood, but I do not believe Nargles are infesting the school," she said. She then turned her attention away from Luna and back in Hermione's direction.

"Hello, you must be the exchange students. I'm Professor McGonagall," she said, turning towards them.

"Hi, I'm Annabeth, this is Grover, and this is... Percy?" Annabeth scanned through the crowds. She scowled and turned her attention back to Professor McGonagall.

"Sorry, Percy... is easily distracted..." she murmured.

"Well, we have to get started now, so if you'll join the first years at the entrance, you will be sorted among them," Professor McGonagall said. "I'm sure he'll be along soon," Annabeth looked over her shoulder, biting her lip nervously.

"Alright. Let's go," she said.

**Where did Percy disappear to? Hm?**

**I know I did Hermione a few chapters ago, but it was requested and very fun to write! SUSPICIONS! So, next chapter is going to be a bit of a Wild Card. It'll be all their reactions to the sorting. Then, I'll write in a chapter for Annabeth (I haven't written her POV in so long) then Ron (him too)**

**So, I hope you enjoyed!**


	11. Chapter XI: The Sorting

**Round and round the wheel we go! Where we stop? NOBODY KNOWS! Ok, not really... it's more like I made an order I thought would work well.**

**Annabeth and Percy's POVs are longer because they are the first and last. (Intro/where Percy had been)**

**_Annabeth_**

Annabeth followed Professor McGonagall, a sharp looking woman and green robes and a pointed hat, to where a large group of eleven year old kids were standing. Annabeth constantly glanced over his shoulder, looking or any sign of Percy, but the only familiar face she saw was Grover, who was following her nervously.

This was just like Percy, always wandering off. He had probably stayed behind to chat with the Thestrals, or take a dip in the lake and look for sea creatures.

The older students filed into the Great Hall, many of them looking at her and Grover strangely. It was obviously uncommon for older kids to be standing with the younger ones.

To distract herself while they waited, she focused on the architecture in the building. Luna was right, the interior of the building was gorgeous. High ceilings, stone walls lit with torches and lined with paintings (all moving), and a beautiful marble staircase leading up to two large doors and a separate set of stairs.

As the last of the older students filed into the hall, Professor McGonagall stepped forwards.

"Hello. My name is Professor McGonagall, and I am the Head of Gryffindor house. In a few moments, you will enter the Great Hall and be placed alphabetically into your houses by the Sorting Hat. I expect you to be patient and quiet as you wait for your turn. Now, get in two lines. Very good," she said. She turned to the doors and straightened her robes.

She pushed the large doors open, revealing an enormous hall with four long tables, and one other perpendicular to the rest. At first, Annabeth thought the ceiling was painted to resemble the night sky, but when she saw a shooting star fly across, she assumed it was some sort of enchantment.

There was a ripple of whispers across the hall as Grover and Annabeth walked by. Annabeth held her head tall, whereas Grover stooped his shoulders and pulled his hat over his ears.

At the front of the room, sitting on a three legged stool, was an old pointed hat. Suddenly, the hat erupted into song. _What's next?_ Annabeth thought sarcastically. _Is the furniture going to jump to life and start dancing?_

"I'm really confused," Grover whispered to Annabeth. Annabeth just shrugged.

Once the hat finished its song, an old man in colourful robes and half-moon glasses stepped forwards. He had a long white beard and wore a pointed hat, though it had no brim, unlike McGonagall's.

He smiled and began his speech: "Welcome to Hogwarts. For all of you here for the first time, my name is Professor Dumbledore. I am the Headmaster of Hogwarts. I hope you all feel at home here in our school. I trust you've noticed something different about our first year students. This year, we have three students joining us all the way from America... hmm...It seems one has wandered off. Well, they will all be joining the sixth year, and I want all of you to welcome them with open arms. They are a bit behind in the curriculum, so please help them any way you can. And now," he said, pausing for effect. "Let the sorting begin!"

Professor McGonagall cleared her throat and unrolled a scroll of parchment paper.

"Chase, Annabeth," she said clearly. Annabeth sighed a huffy breath. She was hoping she would see how the sorting worked before it was her turn.

Annabeth walked up to the front and sat down on the stool. Professor McGonagall placed the hat on her head and a voice filled her mind.

"Oh, what a surprise," the hat said in her mind. "An older child, and an American no less. A wizard, I'm not so sure, but I'll sort you none the less. Now, where to put you. Hmm... you have much bravery in you, yes yes. Could be Gryffindor... but your intelligence, impressive, very impressive... you know how to handle situations logically, yes... must be..." the hat paused before saying aloud "RAVENCLAW!"

**_Harry_**

Harry watched as Annabeth sat down at the end of the Ravenclaw table.

"Well, she's not in Slytherin,," Ron murmured.

"What do you mean?" Seamus asked. Ron glanced over his shoulder and leaned in.

"I have a bad feeling about them," he said in a whisper. "They always act so suspicious,"

"What do you mean?" Neville asked in a small voice. Ron proceeded to list off everything strange about the exchange students. There seemed to be more oddities of the American's every hour.

"I know Annabeth's smart, but I thought she'd be in Gryffindor," Hermione said.

"Why?" Harry asked, turning his attention away from Ron, who was explaining Grover's strange changing ritual.

"Well, yesterday in Flourish and Blotts, Draco came in and Annabeth shut him up with one look," she said. Harry shrugged.

"Well, you're smart and you're in Gryffindor, she's brave and in Ravenclaw," Harry said, shrugging. Hermione considered this for a moment, then nodded.

"One thing's for sure, they guys in the Ravenclaw house are lucky," Seamus said, looking over at Annabeth who was whispering to Grover as he waited to be sorted. Ron snorted loudly.

"Good luck, Seamus. She's got a boyfriend. The third one who disappeared," he laughed.

"Where do you think Percy ran off to, anyways?" Harry asked.

"Who knows," Hermione sighed. Harry looked back up at the front of the room where a tall, round-faced boy ran off towards the Slytherin table. where the sorting was taking place.

"Edwards, Joan," McGonagall called out. A short girl with a long brown braid running down her back walked up and sat down on the stool. After a few seconds, the hat called out "GRYFFINDOR!" Harry applauded as the girl jumped off the stool and joined their table.

McGonagall continued down the list. Finally, she came close to the end.

"Underwood, Grover," she called out. Harry immediately looked over at Grover, who still stood by Annabeth. Annabeth nodded her head encouragingly. Grover walked to the stool and took a seat, tugging at his trousers, a frequent habit of his. McGonagall snatched his hat off his head and handed it to Grover. Hermione gasped.

"Horns," she squeaked. Harry frowned in confusion and glanced at Annabeth quickly. Grover tried to put his hat back on, but the sorting hat was on his head first.

**_Grover_**

Grover prayed to the gods that no one had seen his horns. The mist should have covered them, but there were a some mortals who could see past the mist. Rachel Elizabeth Dare, the camp's oracle, could, as could Sally Jackson, Percy's mom.

Suddenly, a voice entered Grover's mind, making him jump.

"Ah, a second maybe-wizard," the hat said.

"Um... hi," Grover said meekly.

"Let's see... no, no, bravery isn't for you. You will fight when the time comes. Your friends are very important to you, so yes... very well..."

"What? What is it?"

"HUFFLEPUFF!" the hat yelled, it's voice echoing across the chamber. McGonagall pulled the hat off his head. Grover quickly replaced it with his own and hurried over to his table. Grover found an empty seat next to a boy with brown hair and brown eyes.

"Let the feast begin!" Dumbledore said, raising his arms. Heaping piles of food appeared on the table in front of them. Much to Grover's distaste, there was nothing along the lines of wax paper or aluminum cans.

"Hi, I'm Justin Finch-Fletchley," the boy said, holding out his hand to Grover. He shook it tentatively. "You can call me Zach though,"

"Grover," he replied.

"This is Ernie Macmillan. We're both in sixth year," he continued, motioning to the boy with blonde hair across from them. Grover nodded his head and forced a smile, though he was not at all happy. Well yes, he was glad the hat recognized his loyalty to his friends, but saying he wasn't brave? Was that necessary? On top of that, Annabeth was in Ravenclaw, meaning unless Percy was in Hufflepuff, he was alone.

"You know, my aunt's from America. California," Justin said, trying to make conversation.

"Oh, cool," Grover said.

"I went to New York once when I was younger," Ernie said.

"Yeah, that's where I'm from," Grover said before he could stop himself. _You're undercover, Grover. The less they know about you, the better, _he reminded himself.

"I didn't know there was a wizarding school in New York," Jeremy said.

"Well... now you do," he said.

"Are you going to eat?" Ernie asked as he piled his plate high with turkey, rice, and mashed potatoes. Grover looked around the table and decided on having some salad. It wasn't raw, how he liked it, but it would have to do.

Halfway through his meal, Grover felt a tap on his shoulder and he turned around to see Annabeth.

"Grover, did you see Percy?" she asked. He shook his head, making Annabeth scowl.

"I'm going to _kill_ him," she muttered angrily, crossing her arms.

"Why, hello there. The name's Justin," he said. "You know, it's too bad you're not in Hufflepuff. I would love to get to know you more," he said, winking. Annabeth glanced at him, let out a short, breathy laugh.

"Flattered, really," she said bleakly before turning her attention back to Grover.

"I'm going to see if Hermione saw him yet,"

**_Ron_**

Ron scarfed down food, feeding the hunger in his stomach. Hermione stared at him from across the table.

"Honestly, Ron, can you please slow down," Hermione asked. Ron gave her a mocking smile. Hermione shook her head and continued eating her pasta neatly.

"So, what's this other guy, Percy, like?" Seamus asked in between bites.

"Suspicious," Ron said shortly. "All of them are,"

"I gather," Seamus muttered.

"Hey, Hermione," Annabeth said as she came up to their table. Ron glanced up at her. She was gorgeous, but there was no doubt in Ron's mind she was off the market. Hermione put fork her fork and looked up at Annabeth. "Have you seen Percy anywhere?" she asked.

"No, sorry," she said. Annabeth groaned.

"One of these days, I _will _kill him," she sighed tiredly.

"What's wrong?" Harry asked.

"Percy still hasn't shown up," Annabeth explained, sitting on the edge of the bench.

"I saw him get out of the carriage," Harry said.

"I can't believe him sometimes," she groaned.

"Oh, Percy is still missing? Huh, that's strange... it's almost like he's exploring the castle... looking for something," Ron said sharply. This just added to Ron's suspicions. They had to be Death Eaters. He didn't care what houses they were sorted into. Hermione rolled her eyes at Ron.

"Oh, hi, it's Annabeth, right?" Seamus asked. "The name's Seamus Finnigan,"

"Hi," she said, not really paying attention.

"Annabeth, if you're really worried, we could ask Professor McGonagall for help if you want," she suggested.

Annabeth nodded. "I know he can handle himself but... yeah, that'd be good," she said.

Suddenly, the doors to the Great Hall flew open. Standing in the doorway was none other than Percy himself. Everyone in the room went silent.

"There he is," Ron muttered, gesturing to him with a leg of chicken. Percy looked out of breath.

"Percy!" Annabeth exclaimed, stomping towards him. "Where have you been?" she exclaimed.

Percy's knees buckled and he fell forwards. Annabeth put a hand on his shoulder to steady him. Ron squinted and saw that Percy's clothes were ripped in various places.

Hermione stood up and went to see what was wrong. Ron frowned. What had happened?

"Percy... are you okay?" Annabeth asked.

Madam Pomfrey rushed towards them, holding her skirt up. The sound of her shoes echoed across the room. Just as she reached then, Percy collapsed.

**_Hermione_**

Percy's robes were torn by what appeared to be claws, but he wasn't bleeding. He had the same pen from the carriage clutched in his hand tightly.

He collapsed on the ground at their feet. Madam Pomfrey arrived beside them and knelt beside Percy. They were joined by Grover moments later.

Loud shouts of confusion from the students broke out across the room. The teachers got up from their seats to calm them down, but it was Dumbledore who handled the situation.

"Silence," he said loudly. The noise settled to a low whisper, most eyes focused on Dumbledore. "Everyone, please remain calm. Madam Pomfrey, is he alright?"

"He's alright. He's waking up," she called. Percy was struggling to open his eyes.

"Not so fast, not so fast," Madam Pomfrey said as he tried to sit up. "You collapsed. Take it slow now," she said.

"Stupid curse..." he muttered. Hermione's eyes widened at the word curse.

"Percy, what happened?" Annabeth demanded. He sat up fully and rubbed his head.

"I'm fine," he said.

"Come on, we have to get you up to the hospital wing," Madam Pomfrey said.

"No," Percy said quickly. "I'm okay, really. Thanks though," he stood up and rolled his shoulders.

"Mr. Jackson, are you alright?" Dumbledore asked as he walked towards them.

"I'm fine," he insisted.

"I'm glad. I hope you'll enlighten me with where you have been for the past forty-two minutes in my office after dinner," he said.

"Sorry... who are you?" Percy asked. A few snickers passed over the otherwise silent hall.

"My name is Professor Dumbledore," he said briefly before turning to face the rest of the students.

"Please, welcome Mr. Perseus Jackson to our school," he said.

"Percy," he corrected.

"Ah, I'm sorry. Please welcome Mr. _Percy_ Jackson," he repeated. "I believe we have one more student to sort,"

**_Percy_**

Percy was about to follow Annabeth into the castle when something caught his eye. He stopped dead in his tracks. Seemingly out of thin air, Percy thought he saw someone emerge from the shadows on the edge of the dark forest.

He walked towards the shadows, glancing over his shoulder as his friends entered the building. He walked into the forest and past the trees, dodging low branches.

Percy reached into his pocket and pulled out his pen, ready to uncap it. He walked into the woods and looked around cautiously. He didn't see anyone around.

It was ten minutes until he heard twigs snapping behind him. Percy uncapped Riptide and spun around. There was a loud clash as his blade was intercepted by another.

"Whoa, Percy," his cousin said. Nico held his black, Stygian iron sword in the air in front of him.

"Nico, what is wrong with you?" Percy exclaimed, lowering his sword. "Do you know what could happen if someone saw you shadow travel around here?" He sighed and put Riptide back in his pocket. "Why are you here anyways?"

"My dad had an errand he needed me to run for him," Nico said. "You know, important Underworld business,"

"Has it got anything to do with that Voldy-dude?" Percy asked.

"Yep," Nico said, putting his sword back in its sheath. "And you're here to protect the students, I guess?"

"Uh huh, with Grover and Annabeth," he said. He paused, his mind wandering back to what Annabeth had seen the day before.

"Annabeth saw the Fates," Percy said after a short pause. Nico's eyes widened in surprise.

"She did?"

"Yeah, but there's more," Percy continued. "They had two strings, but-"

"Sh!" Nico said suddenly, pulling his sword out of his sheath again. Percy uncapped Riptide and turned around cautiously.

"I thought I smelt a demigod!" a nasally voice said. Standing behind them, leaning on a tree, was a dark-skinned girl with red eyes clad in cheerleader outfit. She had curly, brown hair, and was all too familiar for Percy.

"Kelli? I thought Annabeth vaporized you," Percy asked.

"Who's she?" Nico asked, pointing his sword at Kelli, Percy's not-too-nice-friend.

"Kelli, meet Nico, Nico, meet Kelli, the psycho Emposae-cheerleader," Percy grumbled.

"Ah, ah, ah," Kelli said. "Two on one, not very fair,"

"Yeah, well life isn't fair," Percy said dryly.

"Do you really think so?" another voice said. Percy turned around to face Tammi, the second Empousae he had the displeasure of meeting a year ago.

"I _really_ wish you couldn't come back to life," Percy grumbled before charging at Tammi.

Tammi suddenly transformed into her true, hideous form and fought back, tooth and nail.

"You're pretty far from home, you know?" Percy said to Tammi.

"Where would that be?" she asked, her voice suddenly snake-like.

"Tartarus,"

"What about you? A bit far from Goode, aren't you?" she hissed. Percy slashed at her, but missed her by an inch.

"Hero of Olympus getting a bit slow?" she taunted, launching at Percy and clawing at him. His clothes ripped, but he didn't bleed, thanks to his Achilles curse. With one final swing of Riptide, Tammi turned to dust.

Percy turned around to see Nico still fighting Kelli, now in monster form as well.

"You still fighting her?" he asked, catching his breath. _Stupid Achilles curse, making me twenty times as tired as before_, he thought.

"Not for long," Nico called over his shoulder, swinging his sword straight through Kelli's stomach, reducing her to a pile of monster dust.

"Nice," Percy said approvingly.

"Yeah, doesn't feel so great," Nico grumbled, pulling his shirt up to reveal a long cut along his stomach.

"You need some ambrosia for that? Annabeth has some in her bag," he said.

"Nah, I'm staying in this room I found under some crazy tree in the woods, so I have some there," he said briefly. Percy laughed loudly.

"You know, that should sound a lot crazier to me," he said, looking down at his robes which were now ripped in various places. He felt a soft pounding starting to pulse in the back of his head.

"How's that curse thing working out?" he asked. "Saving you from getting cut up?" Percy nodded and rubbed his head.

"Oh no," he said, realization and remembrance washing over him. "I _hate, hate, hate _ADHD!" he exclaimed, putting his hands behind his heads. "I'm late, Annabeth is going to kill me, and I'm so tired I could pass out," he said. "Stupid ADHD, stupid curse," he grumbled.

"Well, tell me how the protection thing is going when you get a chance," Nico said, waving. Percy ran through the trees back towards the castle looming over in the distance, swearing in Ancient Greek as he ran.

**OMG PERCY AND NICO ARE HAVING A COUSIN BROMANCE! :D I figured that Nico and Percy have an "all is forgiven" agreement.**

**P.S. The Achilles curse did a number on Percy's energy supply, remember this. And since its only a few weeks after he got it, he hasn't adjusted his sleep schedule yet.**

**Choose: RON or ANNABETH chapter next. Haven't written for them exclusively in awhile.**


	12. Chapter XII: Ron

**The results are in! Now, I used the best of my counting abilities (my email is kinda annoying) and here is what I got by Tuesday, February 19:**

**Annabeth- 10**

**Ron- 13**

**WEASLEY IS OUR KING! YAY! Annabeth will be next.**

**Also, I am so touched by how many people left comments and followed/favoured me and my story. YOU GUYS ARE THE BEST!**

**_Ron_**

Ron was almost glad when Percy collapsed on the floor of the Great Hall. He did _not_ trust him.

As Percy walked up to the chair to be sorted, every eye in the hall was on him. Ron saw some of Ginny's friends at the end of the table, whispering and giggling to each other. They pointed at Percy an grinned crazily. Ron rolled his eyes. He wasn't _that_ good looking.

There was a short pause after McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on his head. Ron prayed he wouldn't be in Gryffindor. Anywhere but Gryffindor. Ron's hopes were crushed when the Sorting hat called out "GRYFFINDOR!" sending a wave of screams, mostly female, across the table. Ron and his friends exchanged uneasy looks as Percy came over to them.

They ate in silence for another ten minutes before dessert appeared on the table. Percy looked across the table and grabbed a handful of blueberries. He popped them into his mouth one by one.

Ron scowled at him. Everything he did was so suspicious. Even the way he sat bothered him. In the very last minute of desert, Hermione glared at him.

"Ron, will you stop being so paranoid?" Hermione whispered to him from across the table. Ron glanced at her, then at Percy, then back at Hermione.

"Look at him, Hermione!" Ron hissed. Percy flicked another one of the berries into his mouth.

"So suspicious," Hermione grumbled sarcastically. "We're in Hogwarts now. Calm down. They can't hurt us, though I doubt they are going to,"

Just then, Dumbledore stood up at his podium. He cleared his throat and adjusted his glasses on the bridge of his nose.

"Well, it has been a very eventful night," he said. "Before I dismiss you to your dormitories, I'd like to welcome back Professor Slughorn, who will be teaching Potions. Taking the teaching position for the Defense Against the Dark Arts will be Professor Severus Snape,"

"Oh, not Snape!" Ron groaned quietly.

"Head boys and girls, please lead the first years to their dormitories, and have a pleasant evening. Everyone except Mr. Jackson, Miss Chase, and Mr. Underwood, you may go,"

Ron got up and pushed through the crowds and towards end of the hall, trying to reach the doors.

"Ron, wait up!" Harry called. Ron turned around and waited for Harry and Hermione to reach him.

"What's the hurry?" he asked. Ron glanced over his shoulder before pulling Harry and Hermione by the wrist. Ron pulled them around the corner and pressed against the wall.

"What are you doing?" Hermione hissed.

"Sh!" Ron exclaimed, putting a finger to his lips. All the students made their way upstairs to the dorms. Then, once everyone else had left, Dumbledore, followed by the exchange students, walked out of the Great Hall.

Ron motioned for Harry and Hermione to follow silently. They always waited until they were in the next corridor to run after them.

"I hope you enjoy the facilities," Dumbledore said.

"It's beautiful," Annabeth exclaimed. Suddenly, Grover stopped.

"What's wrong?" Percy asked, turning back to look at Grover. Harry, Ron, and Hermione pressed against the wall around the corner.

"I just thought I heard someone," he murmured. The footsteps continued down the hall.

They entered Dumbledore's office, shutting Ron, Harry, and Hermione out.

"Great," Ron grumbled sarcastically, stooping his shoulders.

"Let's go," Hermione said, turning away.

The three of them walked slowly back to the dorm, much to Ron's dismay. They reached the entrance to the Gryffindor common room.

"Centaur Tail," Hermione said , staring up at the portrait of the Fat Lady. The door behind it swung open, revealing the Gryffindor.

Despite worrying about his suspicions about the exchange students, Ron was glad to be back at Hogwarts.

"Ron, Harry, there you are!" Seamus exclaimed. "You'd never guess who you're rooming with?" Ron's stomach twisted. "You two, Longbottom, and the new kid,"

"No! What if he kills us in our sleep," Ron hissed. This comment made Neville let out a small whisper and sit down on the couch.

"Ron, you _really_ have to calm down. They're not all bad. Maybe its normal behavior in America. You never know," Hermione said.

"You're sharing a room with Percy?" Pavarti Patil asked, poking her head into the conversation.

"Yeah, so?" Ron said grumpily.

"Well, maybe we could all hang out,"

"Fat chance," Ron snorted. Pavarti was extremely taken aback.

"He means, he's dating the girl, Annabeth. She's in Ravenclaw," Hermione said, casting a disapproving glare at Ron.

Just then the door swung open to reveal Percy standing in the doorway. All eyes turned to him. He was wearing his tattered robes and twirling a pen in his hand.

"Hey," he said casually. "I'm Percy," He walked into the common room and looked around. "Uh, where do I sleep?"

"Upstairs and to the left. You're with Ron, Neville, and I," Harry said. A wide, easy going smile split across Percy's face. Pavarti swooned.

"Cool," he said.

"So, where were you during the Sorting?" Ron asked suspiciously.

"Oh, I lost my way,"

"Why're your robes all ripped up then?" Ron persisted.

"Ron, he's obviously tired. There's a time change between here and the States," Pavarti said, shaking her head. "Here, I'll show you your room," she offered, smiling sweetly. "I'm Pavarti, by the way,"

"Hey, thanks, but I can find it on my own," Percy said. "See ya," he said and walked up the stairs.

"Well, that was rude," Pavarti muttered and turned back to her friends who were giggling to each other.

Ron groaned and flopped onto the couch next to Neville, who was still looking anxious. He was staring at a small potted plant in his lap. Ron didn't bother asking what it was.

"I'm sure it won't be that bad," Hermione said.

"You're just saying that because you fancy him," Ron grumbled. Hermione's jaw dropped.

"I do not!" she protested, obviously offended "You are insufferable!" she exclaimed and stomped upstairs to her bedroom.

"Why's she so upset?"

"Maybe she fancies someone else," Seamus suggested. Ron shrugged and glanced at the stairs where Hermione had disappeared.

"Well, if she does, she sure hides it well," he muttered.

"Well, I'm getting some sleep, I don't know about you guys," Seamus said. "Quidditch tryouts tomorrow, eh Captain?" Seamus said, patting Harry on the back. Harry smiled, his eyes filling with excitement and pride.

"Good idea," Harry said, also heading towards the stairs. Neville sighed and followed them upstairs.

"Neville, you going too?" Ron asked.

"I've wanted to go for ten minutes. I just didn't want to be alone in the same room as Percy, not after what you've been saying about him," Neville said before dashing up the stairs. With a weary sigh, Ron followed them.

**Ok, so I don't know if Quidditch try outs would be the second day, but whatever! I have fun things planned *devilish smile***


	13. Chapter XIII: Annabeth

**Yay! Annabeth chapter :D**

**I got the names of some Ravenclaw people, but I had to use guess work of their looks and characteristics.**

**_Annabeth_**

Annabeth walked with Percy to the Ravenclaw tower after their meeting in Professor Dumbledore's office. Dumbledore had repeated a similar speech to Chiron's about not raising suspicions and keeping an eye on Harry and his friends.

They had just dropped Grover by the entrance to the Hufflepuff dormitories, a round door located in the basement. On the way,she had given Percy a stern lecture not to wander off anymore.

"You really don't have to walk me to my room," Annabeth insisted again.

"I know," Percy said simply.

"So, what did Nico say?" Annabeth asked. Percy had yet to go into detail about their encounter.

"He said that Hades sent him to find out how Voldy-dude is still alive," Percy said. "Oh, and he said something about living under a deranged tree..." Annabeth raised a skeptical eyebrow, but Percy just shrugged.

"We have to be more careful. Everyones already so suspicious about us," Annabeth said.

"I know,"

"Especially you,"

"I know,"

"I mean, you come in late and your clothes are all ripped up. Not to mention, you're in Gryffindor with Ron and Harry and Hermione. They're really beginning to question us," Annabeth continued.

"Calm down Wise Girl," Percy said, laughing softly. "I'll be more careful, I promise,"

They reached the entrance to the Ravenclaw tower, marked by a bronze eagle. The eagle sprung to life to face us.

"What goes on four legs in the morning, on two legs at noon, and on three legs in the evening?," it said in a smooth voice.

Annabeth had no trouble finding the answer, as it was a riddle she was very familiar with. "A man, who crawls on all fours as a baby, walks on two legs as an adult, and walks with a cane in old age," The door to the common room swung open, revealing a tight, spiral staircase.

"That's why you're Wise Girl," Percy said, giving her a peck on the cheek.

"Night, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth smiled, walking up the spiral staircase. As she walked, she barely noticed the small smile on her face.

But, when she walked into the Ravenclaw common room, her smile faded. Over dinner, she had yet to see a friendly face at the Ravenclaw table., so she wasn't too thrilled when she walked in and was met by judgmental eyes.

"So, you're Annie, right?" a girl asked, coming forwards. "I'm Isabel. Isabel MacDougal," She had long, brown hair, and brown eyes, and looked as if she could be in the Aphrodite cabin.

"It's Annabeth," she corrected.

"How'd you like the riddle?" Isabel asked, ignoring Annabeth's comment.

"Uh, okay, I guess. Pretty easy, actually," she said, shrugging. Isabel let out a short, breathy laugh filled with doubt. Before Annabeth could react.

"Annabeth!" Luna said, approaching her. Isabel crossed her arms and glanced at Luna in slight disgust before walking away to join her friends.

"I'm so glad you're in Ravenclaw," Luna continued, smiling. Annabeth returned the smile, glad to see a familiar face.

"Hey, Luna," Annabeth said, brushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"You met Isabel," Luna remarked, glancing at the girl. Annabeth nodded. "She's very pretty, and smart. Not so nice though," Luna said honestly. "I'm sorry you have to share a room with her,"

"I do?" Annabeth asked regretfully. Luna nodded. "Well, its only sleeping," she sighed, shrugging her shoulders.

Annabeth decided to turn in early. She was still tired, despite all the rest she got on the train. When she found her room, she dug through her bag and found a pair of pajamas. She tried to fall asleep, but after a while, became irritate and pulled out her school books instead.

Because of her dyslexia, Annabeth knew reading over the material beforehand would make everything much easier to understand in class, as well as help her blend to in. Also, she hated being unprepared for anything.

Annabeth lay across the bed on her stomach, reading the page slowly. As she went, she underlined important words she found with a pencil.

"Oh, hi, Annabeth, right?" a girl asked, poking her head into the room. She had dark brown hair and blue eyes. Annabeth looked up and smiled slightly.

"Yeah, hi," she said, getting up and reaching out to shake her hand.

"I'm Mandy... Brocklehurst," she said in a small, sweet voice. "Are you going over your school books?" she asked. Annabeth nodded and sat back down on the edge of her bed. Mandy sat on the bed beside Annabeth's and took off her shoes.

"So, what school are you from?" Mandy asked.

"Uh, 'Mr. Bruner's Academy for the Gifted'," Annabeth replied, taking a moment to remember her 'school'.

"Oh, ok," she said.

The door to the room swung open and the same girl from before, Isabel, walked in followed by another girl with long dark hair and looked to be of Indian descent.

"Oh, you're in this room Mandy? That's great!" Isabel said excitedly. Mandy smiled uncomfortably and pulled her feet up onto her bed. "You know Padma, right?" Mandy nodded.

Seeing that Isabel had no intention of paying her any sort of notice, Annabeth continued reading through her book.

"So, what did you think of Snape finally becoming the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor?" Padma asked, opening her trunk and pulling out a pair of pajamas.

"I'm not too thrilled. He's... sinister," Isabel said in a low voice.

"Oh, what about that boy, Percy. He is very attractive," Isabel noted. Annabeth's head snapped up at the mention of Percy's name.

"Very," Padma giggled.

"I think I could get to know him very well," Isabel said, twirling her hair. _Yep_, Annabeth thought. _Definitely an Aphrodite-type girl._

"He has a girlfriend," Annabeth pipped up, not wanting to sit through a conversation of other girls talking about her boyfriend, though she had a feeling it wouldn't be the last time.

"Oh? Someone from your school?"

"Yes... and in _this_ school," Annabeth said, only lifting her eyes for a moment. Padma's jaw dropped, which Annabeth was quite offended by. Isabel raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms.

"You? And Percy?" she asked. Annabeth nodded. "Well, I hope that works out for you two," Isabel said curtly.

They didn't talk very much for the rest of the night. Annabeth overheard hushed conversations between Padma and Isabel, mainly about her, Percy, and her and Percy.

After a while, Annabeth grew tired of pretending she didn't hear them, even though she did, and hated it. So, she kicked the covers off her legs and left the room, holding her book under her arm and shoving her pencil behind her ear.

Annabeth walked down the stairs and curled up in a small, cushioned chair in the corner. She opened her book again and continued reading. As she went, she found it harder and harder to keep her eyes open, though every time she closed them, she saw the Fates, their scissors hovering over two strings.

Eventually, Annabeth was forced to give into her exhaustion and fell into a deep sleep where she had nightmares of the Fates.

When she awoke the next morning, light was just seeping in through the window above her head. No one else seemed to be awake yet, as the common room was completely empty. Annabeth stretched her and gathered her things from the night before.

She returned to her room quietly to find her three roommates still sleeping soundly. Annabeth quickly changed into her annoying uniform and put her things away.

"Where are you going so early?" a sneering voice asked. Annabeth lifted her head and looked at Isabel who was sitting up in her bed.

"Breakfast," Annabeth said briefly, closing the door behind her as she left the room.

Annabeth walked down the spiral staircase of the Ravenclaw Tower and out into the long corridors. She walked down two flights of stairs when suddenly, there was a low rumble. Annabeth let out a short gasp of surprise as the staircases shifted underneath her. She held onto the railing to steady herself and waited for the staircase to stop moving.

"Magic stairs, of course," Annabeth grumbled. She continued down to the bottom of the stairs and looked around the empty hallways. She cursed in Ancient Greek. She was lost.

Annabeth tried following the staircases back to the common room, but after they changed for a second time, it seemed like an impossible task.

Annabeth let out a deep sigh and brushed a curly strand of hair behind her ear.

Suddenly, she heard shoes scuffing against the floor. She whipped around and found herself a few feet away from the boy she had met a few days earlier, Malfoy.

"_You_," he spat, sneering.

"Good to see you too," Annabeth said, rolling her eyes.

"Why are you here so early?" he asked, crossing his arms. Annabeth studied his face. His eyes darted around the room nervously and his jaw was clenched tightly.

"You're nervous," Annabeth stated.

"Why would I be?" he snapped.

"How should I know," Annabeth shrugged. Malfoy looked about ready to explode, though Annabeth wasn't sure why.

"Look, you filthy little-"

"I really don't have time to listen to your rant about how I'm a filthy-little-whatever, I'm just trying to find the dining hall," Annabeth said, waving her hand dismissively. Malfoy sneered and narrowed his eyes. Annabeth was not in the mood to listen to Malfoy. First, she had to deal with gossipy girls, now pretty boys.

"Just stay away from here," Malfoy growled, shoving past her aggressively, even though there was plenty of room for him to walk around her. He disappeared around the corner, dragging his feet as he went.

"Pushy," Annabeth mumbled as she turned around and walked down the stairs.

After a few more minutes, she reached the large double doors leading to the Great Hall. She slipped in and looked around the nearly empty hall.

_How early is it? _she asked herself, meeting eyes with the only other person in the room. If you could call him a person.

He was a short, leathery looking person-creature. He wore an array of hats and mittens, a long green sweater, and purple shorts. On his feet were layer upon layer of socks. He had wide, glassy, green eyes, a long, thin nose, and pointed floppy ears.

"Hello," he said in a high, cheery voice.

"Hi... um, who are you?" Annabeth asked cautiously. For all she knew, this elf-like creature could easily be a monster ready to attack her.

"Dobby, very pleased to meet you," he said innocently.

"I'm Annabeth,"

"No one is ever up so early as Annabeth," he said. "No one talks in a voice like hers,"

"I'm from America," Annabeth explained. Dobby smiled and hobbled towards her.

"Dobby must go back to the kitchen, but he will say good bye to his new friend first," he said, waving. Annabeth gave a small, unsure smile. "Also, Miss does not need her knife. Hogwarts is safe," Dobby said as he hobbled away and out of sight, leaving Annabeth even more perplexed than before. Dobby, as he called himself, could see through the mist that was supposed to conceal her weapon. Annabeth adjusted her skirt over the sheath of her knife and concealed the hilt under her robes.

_This place keeps getting stranger and stranger_, Annabeth thought, letting out a deep sigh and sitting down at the Ravenclaw table, waiting for the rest of the school to wake up.

**Dobby! 3**

**I feel like this chapter took a long time, and I'm sorry about that. I have so much stuff going on, but I'll try and get out the next chapter quicker.**

**So, battle it out: Percy or Harry next?**


	14. Chapter XIV: Harry

**Hi there! So, it has been brought to my attention that at times I may switch to first person for a sentence. If I do, I'm really sorry. I'm in the middle of planning out a few other stories, both written in first person, so sometimes I'm just in that mindset.**

**Now, the chapter votes:**

**Harry: 13**

**Percy: 7**

**I love Harry and all but... poor Seaweed Brain... :(**

**_Harry_**

Harry woke the next morning filled with energy. The fast approaching Quidditch try outs had him feeling both excited and nervous. He was captain. He had to set an example, encourage his team, make rules.

Ron was awake as well, pacing back and forth nervously, Neville was reading a book about Herbology, and Percy were still asleep.

"Ron, what are you doing?" Harry asked.

"I'm walking, what does it look like I'm doing?"

"Hunting for elephants," Harry said sarcastically. "Calm down would you? Are you nervous for the tryouts?" Ron nodded and continued pacing.

"You'll let me on the team, right?" Ron asked.

"I can't make promises. We'll see how you do in tryouts," Harry said, stretching his arms out in front of him.

"Let's go eat. I'm hungry," Ron grumbled.

"When are you not?" Harry wondered. Ron simply rolled his eyes at him.

The two of them changed quickly and walked out of the room. Just before they were about to exit the Common Room, Neville stumbled down the stairs, tying his tie.

"Wait up!" he called. "I'm not being alone in the room with Percy, not after what you guys said about him," The three of them walked down the stairs towards the Great Hall.

"So, Harry, you think I've got a chance at Keeper?" Ron asked hopefully, yet with some traces of doubt in his voice.

"Cormac McLaggen is your biggest competitor, so you don't have a chance," Harry joked, patting his friend on the shoulder. Ron shot him an ungrateful look. "Kidding! You're just as good as he is,"

"You think any of the American's are going to try out?" Ron asked spitefully. Harry shrugged his shoulders as they entered the doors to the Great Hall.

The tables were already buzzing with life. The two boys made their way over to the Gryffindor table and sat across from Hermione, who had her nose buried in a book.

"What're you reading?" Neville asked her as all of them began piling food onto their plate.

"A book I checked out of the library this morning," she explained.

"You've already been to the library?" Ron asked in bewilderment, tearing a bite out of a piece of toast. Hermione shot him an annoyed glare before continuing to flip through the pages. After a few minutes, she slammed the book shut.

"It isn't in here," she said, whipping her head up.

"Wha isn'?" Ron asked with a mouthful of eggs.

"Their school! The Americans'," she explained. "This book has the history of all the wizarding schools in the world, and 'Mr. Bruner's Academy for the Gifted' isn't in here,"

"I knew it! They're phonies! Those accents don't even sound real," Ron exclaimed, waving his finger at no one in particular. Harry pursed his lips. Though he thought the American students were suspicious, he didn't want to be so quick to accuse them.

"I don't know..." Harry said uneasily. "I'm all for finding out who they really are, but we can't jump to conclusions. We need more proof,"

"More proof? _More proof?!_" Ron cried. "Let's see, their school isn't in that book, Percy disappeared last night and came back with his clothes all ripped, but not a single scratch, Grover is unnaturally attached to his hat, and-"

"Sirius died last year because I thought he was in trouble, Ron. We have to wait until we know for sure," Harry persisted, his tone becoming harsh.

"Hey, mind if I sit here?" Percy asked, walking up to them and breaking their silence. They all stared up at him.

After a moments hesitation, Hermione spoke up. "What did you say your school's name was again?" she asked.

"'Mr. Bruner's Academy for the Gifted'," Percy recited, sitting down beside Neville. Neville inched away from him ever so slightly, though enough for Percy to take notice.

"Is it a new school?" Hermione inquired. Percy thought for a moment.

"Uh, no, it's pretty old, practically Ancient," Percy said, chuckling to himself softly for some reason unknown to Harry and his friends.

"Morning!" a new voice said cheerily. Harry looked over his shoulder to see Ginny as she came and sat beside him. Harry's stomach did a strange twist when she smiled.

"Ready for the tryouts today?" she asked, flipping her hair over her shoulder.

"What?" Harry asked obliviously.

"Quidditch,"

"Oh, yeah, right! Definitely! You're trying out, right?" Harry asked, sounding a bit too hopeful.

"Of course! Considering everyone else who's trying out, I'm your best option," she said, smiling wickedly.

"Hey!" Ron snapped angrily.

"Oh, calm down," Ginny said, rolling her eyes at her brother. "I'll see you later, I told Dean I'd eat with him," she said, standing up to join Dean at the other end of the table. Harry watched as she sat beside him and he gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"Are she and Dean _dating_?" Harry asked in disbelief.

"Last time I checked," Ron replied, shrugging his shoulders.

"Well, I'm going to return this book to the library," Hermione said sharply, looking directly at Harry and motioning to the door.

"Oh, yeah, I'll come," Harry said, standing up.

"Me too," Ron said. He stood up and grabbed a fourth piece of toast to go.

"Me three," Neville said, following their example.

"Bye, Percy," Hermione said. The four of them walked to the doors of the Great Hall.

"So, the school really isn't in there?" Harry asked Hermione.

"No, I checked three times!" she exclaimed.

"I can't believe it!" Ron muttered, shaking his head. They walked down the hall and towards the library, each of them deep in thought.

Once they reached the library, Hermione returned the book and returned to Harry and Ron.

"There's one other place the school might be," Hermione said, motioning for them to follow her. She maneuvered through the shelves skillfully, scanning the books quickly.

"Here!" she exclaimed finally, pulling out a leather bound book with bold silver writing that read "Wizards of America" on the front in large, capital letters.

"I'm going to check this book out and look more carefully. You should get going for the Quidditch tryouts," she said. "Neville? Are you going too?"

"I think I'm going to unpack, actually. Tell me if you find anything else on the Americans," he said, his eyes shifting nervously.

"Are you going to come cheer me on?" Ron asked, smiling. Hermione laughed.

"Sure, Ron," she smiled. "Good luck," she said, and walked away.

"She wishes you luck and not me?" Harry remarked once she was out of sight.

"You've already got a spot on the team, and let's face it, girls love me," Ron said. "Now let's go play some Quidditch,"

Down at the Quidditch pitch, both he and Ron were filled with excitement. A few people had already arrived down by the field. Harry was pleased to see that his _Firebolt_ already down by the field and waiting for him. Harry grabbed the trunk of Quidditch balls and set it down in the center of the field.

"If you're here for tryouts, gather round, if not, please sit on the bleachers," Harry called. Gryffindor students of all ages lined up in front of him, some looking anxious, other cool and confident. After a quick speech of rules and encouragement, the tryouts were ready to begin.

Harry kicked off into the air, the familiar sensation of flying filling him up. He smiled and looked down at the players below him, organizing a small game to test their skills.

Down on the ground, Harry could see the three exchange students staring up at them. Percy, distinguished by his dark hair was waving his arms wildly, and Grover and Annabeth seemed to be laughing, but they were too far away to tell for sure.

"Okay!" Harry called, zipping through the game and snatching the Quaffle in mid-throw. "Who wants to be on the Gryffindor Quidditch team?"

**Yay Quidditch! Subtle Ronmione?**

**So, as I'm writing this, my internet is down... AGAIN! So, I'm sorry that this is a late-ish post.**

**I MISSED YOU, INTERNET! 3**


	15. Chapter XV: Percy

**Seaweed Brain 3**

**Some people asked for more Percabeth, and I tried to incorporate a bit more in this chapter, but I have to find an opportunity for them to be alone first.**

_**Percy**_

Percy's dreams swarmed with visions of a pale, snake-like man sitting at the head of a long, empty table. All the man did was sit there, but it still freaked him out. He stared into the distance with a focused look, his eyes occasionally flickering to the door, as if he were waiting for someone or something.

Percy woke with a jolt, shooting up in his bed. All of his roommates were gone. He looked around the unfamiliar room and sighed. He missed his cabin, even if it was a bit lonely at times, and very messy.

Percy quickly changed into his uniform, stuffed Riptide in his pocket, and jogged down the stairs. He followed the stream of students that had yet to arrive for breakfast to the Dining Hall.

After being ditched by Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Neville, Percy got up and walked over to the Ravenclaw table to find Annabeth. He spotted her by the end of the table removed from everyone else, poking at a chocolate chip pancake.

"Good morning," Percy said, sitting down beside her with his back leaning against the table.

"Hm? Oh, hey," she said tiredly, continuing to stab her food.

"Okay, you're attacking an innocent pancake, so something must be wrong," Percy said jokingly, trying to lift her spirits. When she didn't react to his comment, Percy instantly began to worry. "What's up Wise Girl? Did you end up sleeping at all?" Annabeth swung her legs over the bench so she also had her back pressed against the table's edge.

She took a moment to tie her hair up in a ponytail before responding. "I kept seeing the Fates," she said, her voice cracking slightly. She looked up at him with stormy grey eyes. "Why can't they just leave me alone?" Percy wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulder.

"I promise I'm not going anywhere, and neither are you," he said, kissing the top of her head. Annabeth smiled.

"Thanks, Seaweed Brain," she said, resting her head on his shoulder and yawning.

"Annie! You haven't introduced us to your friend!" a voice exclaimed. Annabeth let out a small groan and turned her face so it was buried in Percy's shirt. He looked over her shoulder to see two Ravenclaw girls walking up to them, one of them seeming very familiar.

"Oh, hey, Pavarti, right?" Percy asked the girl with long dark hair.

"No, that's my sister. I'm Padma," she said, as if this should have been a known fact.

"And I'm Isabel," the girl who had spoken before said, holding out her hand and smiling widely. Percy shook it hesitantly. Annabeth looked up at him with pleading eyes, as if asking if they could leave.

"We're all roommates, along with Mandy over there," Isabel continued, gesturing to a girl with bright blue eyes and brown hair. At hearing her name, the girl lifted her head slightly, before looking back down again.

"Cool," Percy said. He was about to turn back to continue talking to Annabeth, but Isabel seemed determined to keep the conversation going.

"So, are you going to try out for Quidditch? You look like you'd be good at it. Very athletic," she said, giggling slightly and sliding down in the seat beside him.

"I don't know, maybe" he replied, shrugging his shoulders. Annabeth raised her eyebrows in shock. "What?" Percy said in reply. "I'm _so_ athletic,"

"But... well, if you really want to..." Annabeth said, shrugging her shoulders heavily.

"Oh come on Annie," Isabel drawled.

"Annabeth," Percy and Annabeth corrected simultaneously.

"Have a little faith in him," Isabel continued, ignoring the correction. Percy shifted uncomfortably.

"Uh, Annabeth, I'm going to see how Grover's doing," he said, standing up. Annabeth grabbed his hand and stood with him.

"I'll come too," she said immediately. She addressed the other two girls with a curt nod. "Bye Isabel, Padma," she said shortly.

"What was that about?" Percy asked once they were out of earshot.

"Those two are total Aphrodite girls, don't get me started," Annabeth said, shaking her head.

They found Grover eating a carrot stick at the Hufflepuff table. He seemed very interested in a discussion about some sort of plant that Percy wasn't familiar with.

"Hey, what's up G-man?" Percy asked. A wide smile split across Grover's face.

"You won't believe the kind of plants they have here!" he exclaimed. "Oh, this is Justin and Ernie," he said, pointing to two boys across the table from him. The boys lifted their attention for a moment to greet Percy and Annabeth before returning to their conversation.

"You seem happy," Annabeth grumbled.

"And you don't," Grover observed. "Rough night again?" he asked. Annabeth looked over her shoulder spitefully at the girl from before, Isabel.

"You could say so," she muttered. Percy looked at Annabeth, concern crossing his face. He searched his mind for a way to distract her from whatever was making her so upset.

"Well, why don't we go down to the field and see what this whole 'Quidditch' thing is about. I want to know what's the big deal," Percy said, smiling widely. Annabeth let out a short sigh and smiled slightly.

"Sure. Anything to get out of here," she said. Percy took her hand and motioned for Grover to follow. Quickly saying good bye to his knew friends, Grover scampered after them.

They walked through the doors of the Great Hall, and outside towards the Quidditch pitch in the distance.

"How are you supposed to get a ball in _those_ hoops," Percy said in amazement, staring up at the goal posts. He spotted Harry addressing a group of students, holding a broom in his hand. All of a sudden, they all swung one leg over their brooms and shot into the sky.

"WHAT!?" Percy exclaimed, his stomach twisting in a knot. "They're FLYING?!" he exclaimed, waving his arms around. Annabeth and Grover exchanged a quick look before breaking out into laughter.

"You didn't know?" Grover asked in disbelief.

"And you did?"

"Ernie explained it to me last night," Grover chuckled.

"And I heard some of the Ravenclaw boys talking about it too," Annabeth added in. "_That's_ why I was so surprised when you said you might try out," Percy glared at her, yet that just made her laugh even more. She laced her fingers in his and pulled him towards the bleachers to watch.

"So, what was with the death glare to those girls earlier?" Grover asked Annabeth.

"Ugh, they're horrible! Gossiping about us right in front of my face," she exclaimed, dropping down heavily onto one of the wooden benches.

"Us? They were talking about me?" Grover spluttered. Annabeth's eyes flickered to Percy.

"No...uh, Percy and me..." she said, blushing slightly.

"What'd they say?" Percy asked.

"Nothing important," Annabeth said, shrugging her shoulders and staring out over the Quidditch field.

"Come on! Tell me," Percy said, wrapping both arms around her and tickling her sides.

"Percy, stop, no, that tickles!" she exclaimed, giggling and pushing his hands away. In the midst of their laughter, Hermione approached them.

"Hello," Hermione said in a small voice, holding a couple books in her arms.

"Hey," Annabeth said, rather loudly, as Percy was still threatening to tickle her, and even the prospect of that seemed to make Annabeth unable to contain herself. "What are you reading?" she asked, pushing Percy away and craning her neck to see the titles of the books in her arms. Hermione hugged the books tightly to her chest, obscuring them from their view.

"Just a few books on... uh..." Hermione paused, thinking of something to say. "Greek mythology!" she blurted out, seeming satisfied with her answer.

Percy, Annabeth, and Grover looked at each other nervously, and Percy was almost positive they were having a similar thought. What if she knew? Percy shook his head slightly. How could she have?

"Greek mythology. That's cool," Annabeth said casually.

"I started reading it over the summer and I absolutely fell in love with it. Fancied myself to be a daughter of Athena," she began to ramble. "She's the Goddess of Wisdom," Percy glanced at Annabeth and smiled knowingly.

"Yeah, I know," Annabeth said.

"Oh, have you read about the Greek myths as well?" Hermione asked, seeming more comfortable than before.

"A bit," Annabeth replied, smiling slightly. In a blink of an eye, the two girls were deep in a conversation about Greek mythology that, though the concepts were easy for Percy understand, he couldn't quite keep up with as they jumped from one tale to the next.

"Great save, Ron!" a girl a little way down the bench called excitedly. Hermione's head whipped around, her bushy hair flying over her shoulders.

"Lavender? What is she doing here?" Percy heard Hermione mutter to herself. Annabeth glanced over at the girl who was looking at Ron with glowing admiration.

"Who?" Grover wondered.

"Lavender Brown. She's in the Gryffindor house with us," Hermione explained, keeping her eyes glued to the girl with dirty blonde hair.

"Ron's doing well... I think," Grover said. Hermione tore her eyes away from Lavender and placed them on Ron.

"Yes, but Cormac McLaggen, that boy over there, he's good as well," Hermione said, pointing to one of the other goalposts where a boy hovering, blocking balls just like Ron.

Hermione began to look nervous when a ball entered Ron's goalpost. She glanced at Percy and his friends, then pointed her wand up at Cormac. She whispered something and quickly hid her wand. Suddenly, the boy Hermione had pointed at, Cormac McLaggen jutted to the right of the hoop abruptly, letting a ball fly through.

"Was that you?" Percy asked in disbelief.

Hermione blushed slightly. "Don't tell anyone, please. Ron really wants this spot on the team," she said.

"Your secret's safe with us," Annabeth said, smiling warmly.

After the Quidditch tryouts, Percy, Annabeth, and Grover said good bye to Hermione and walked back up towards the school

"She knows about Greek mythology," Annabeth said urgently. "We can't let anything slip," She looked over her shoulder cautiously.

"Wise Girl, calm down, everything is going to be fine," Percy said, linking hands with her.

They continued walking, not saying much, just enjoying one another's company.

"Wait," Grover said abruptly, turning his nose up. "I smell something..." he said slowly.

"Monsters?" Percy asked, reaching into his pocket and gripping Riptide in his fingers, ready to uncap the pen at any given moment. Annabeth had also put her hand to her hip where she had concealed her knife.

"No... something worse... it's like something is dead and alive at the same time..." Grover said with a dark, eerie tone. Percy scanned the surrounding areas at the top of the slope from the Quidditch field.

"Where is it coming from?" Annabeth asked. Grover focused for a moment before taking off towards the forest in the distance.

Percy and Annabeth ran after him, weapons at the ready.

They passed by a small hut before dashing along a narrow path through the forest until they reached a large tree. It's trunk forked off into many different limbs with long, gnarled branches and twigs. The tree itself seemed to sway back and forth.

"The scent leads here," Grover said. "The zombie person is here somewhere," he said slowly.

Percy took a step towards the tree, when suddenly, it sprang to life. Its branches whipped out towards him, the twigs flying in a whirlwind as the limbs bent around crazily.

Percy's eyes widened. "Grover, is there a demigod in there?" he asked urgently.

"I don't know. Maybe. The scent is coming from underneath the tree, so my nose isn't as good. That means that whatever is under there has to be very powerful. Why?"

"I think this is Nico's crazy tree,"

**Sorry if the location for the Whomping Willow is a bit off.**

**I hope you like the chapter! If you have any input or suggestions, feel free to leave a review! :D**


	16. Chapter XVI: Grover

**Last time, I asked for a few suggestions, and any that I got were really great! But there is just one that I loved and that I can't reply to, and I'd like to give a quick shout out...**

**Mairead (Guest): I ABSOLUTELY LOVED YOUR IDEA! When I put it in the story (because I most likely will), I will give you the credit you deserve.**

_**Grover**_

Grover's nose tingled like crazy. Under the crazy, swinging tree, there was a power unlike any other force he had ever... well... smelt. He tried to make out the scent of a demigod, but no matter how hard he... um... sniffed... he could not find one.

"If Nico is under there, we have to get him out," Grover said urgently. "There's some sort of demon zombie, and Nico could be in trouble,"

"How do we even get down there? This plant is trying to rip our heads off!" Percy exclaimed. Grover thought for a moment, then, an idea popped into his mind. A smile spread across his face.

"Dude, I'm the Lord of the Wild," Grover said, almost laughing. He pulled is reed pipes out from a pocket in his robe (it wasn't like he would leave them behind) and played a tune that sounded somewhat similar to "Call Me Maybe", much to Percy and Annabeth's distress. The tree, however, seemed to like it. It stopped swinging its branches around, trying to knock the three friends to the ground.

"Keep playing, Grover," Annabeth said, walking up to the tree.

"How are we supposed under it?" Percy asked. Grover took a deep breath and continued playing.

"Look around for some sort of secret entrance," she said. Percy crouched around the base of the tree and ran his fingers around it.

Suddenly, Percy let out a short yelp of surprise and flailed his arms. One moment, he was there, and the next, he had disappeared.

"Percy!" Annabeth called, running to the spot where he had mysteriously vanished. Her foot slipped and she fell to the ground, also disappearing under the tree.

"Percy, Annabeth!" Grover yelled, the music from his reed pipes stopping. The tree began to sway again. Grover rolled his eyes and continued playing the annoying song. He walked carefully to where both his friends had disappeared. He peered over and stopped playing to call their names, before quickly starting again.

"Grover! Come down here, quickly!" Percy called up to him. Grover frowned.

"How?" Grover asked between verses.

"Just... step forwards!" Annabeth yelled. Grover shoved his reed pipes back in his pocket and, in a courageous step, he fell into a hidden tunnel in the roots.

"Whoa!" he exclaimed, collapsing face first into the small dirt passageway.

Percy and Annabeth were crouched beside him, their faces and hands smudged with dirt and grass.

Grover sat up and took a deep breath. The scent was now so strong that it burned his nose, despite him being underground. Grover plugged his nose to stop the smell.

"It's here. Down the tunnel," he said, scrambling to move from his awkward positioning.

He, Percy, and Annabeth crawled along the tunnel and emerged into a rickety shack. They climbed out slowly and cautiously.

The place was in ruins. Broken furniture lay everywhere. A heap of clothes lay in a pile in the corner, one of them being an aviators jacket that was very familiar.

"Nico?" Percy called. No response. However, the scent was still there. Grover could now even make out the faint smell of a demigod as well, in addition to Percy and Annabeth of course.

"There are more of you?" a cold voice rasped, echoing around the room. Percy and Annabeth drew their weapons. "You see, I already dealt with that first meddling brat," They turned full circle, searching for the source of the voice.

"Who are you? What did you do with Nico?" Percy asked in a low growl, swinging Riptide through the air.

"Your little pest is fine," the voice sneered. Grover spun around again and found himself face to face with a pale man with snake like features and a sickeningly cold stare. Beside him, floating in mid air, head lolled forwards, was Nico. He was unconscious and bleeding heavily from the forehead.

Grover nudged Percy and Annabeth, who turned to face the man.

"_Let. Him. Go._" Percy said harshly, raising Riptide.

The man let out a sickening laugh. "A pen? You think you're going to stop me with... _a pen_?" The mist had obviously veiled the man from seeing Riptide's true form.

"You should see my hat," Annabeth smirked. "Now, give us Nico," she said in a sharp voice.

"Oh, not quite yet," he said, holding up his wand at the three of them. "Now, this friend of yours, he moves through the shadows. I've never seen such magic,"

"Who are you?" Grover asked, his voice trembling slightly. Despite being the Lord of the Wild, Grover's nervous tendencies stuck with him, one of them being that evil things made him very uncomfortable.

The man snarled, revealing his yellowing teeth. "You don't know who I am?" he asked angrily "I am the Dark Lord. I am Lord Voldemort!" he yelled, his rage seeming to grow with each word.

"Good for you! Now, let him go," Percy snapped angrily.

"How dare you speak to me that way! You will pay for your insolence," he threatened, drawing back his arm, his wand pointed at Percy.

"_Avada Kedavra_!" A flash of light burst from the wand and rushed towards Percy, but it bounced harmlessly off his sword. Once again, a beam of light shot from Voldy's wand again, at Annabeth this time, but she deflected it just as easily. The man let out a cry of frustration.

"Answer me! Why are you here?" he screamed, pulling Nico's head up and holding his wand to his forehead. "Tell me, or I kill him," he said menacingly.

"Okay! Okay," Percy relented. "Look, we're exchange students from America, alright? We didn't do anything wrong. Just let him go,"

"Why was this one spying?" he asked, pushing the tip of his wand closer to Nico's neck.

"He's special. He can't always control where he transports himself. He didn't mean to spy," Annabeth piped up. There was a long pause.

"Pity. We can't have him teleporting where he isn't wanted. I better put him out of his misery," the man said slowly.

"No!" Percy yelled, lunging forwards and swinging at Voldemort with Riptide. However, before he could reach him, Voldemort and Nico disappeared into thin air.

"Return here in one week with the answers to my questions, or I will not be so merciful," Voldemort's voice echoed throughout the room.

"WHERE ARE YOU?" Percy yelled. No response. He swung his sword around in frustration, letting out a loud cry of annoyance and anger.

"We should go see Dumbledore," Grover said, putting a hand on Percy's shoulder. Percy nodded and followed Grover and Annabeth back through the tunnel and into the open air where the psycho tree had begun to sway again.

Grover let out a deep sigh and, once again, played the oh-so-annoying tune on his reed pipes, calming the tree long enough for them to get a safe distance away.

They ran to the castle, Percy leading. They travelled up the staircases, turning corners until they found the entrance to Dumbledore's office. Percy pounded on the wall loudly, asking aloud for the doors to open.

"Dumbledore! Please, let us in!" Percy yelled.

"Mr. Jackson!" a tight voice exclaimed. Grover looked over his shoulder to see Professor McGonagall standing with her arms crossed over her chest. "What on earth are you doing?"

"We need to see Dumbledore, now," Annabeth said.

"Whatever it is, it will have to wait. The Headmaster had an urgent meeting with the Minister of Magic. Is there anything I can help you with?" she asked.

"No, it's okay," Annabeth sighed, rubbing her eyes. "We'll wait until he comes back... uh, when will that be, exactly?"

"A week or so," she said. Grover cursed in his mind. Professor McGonagall paused, studying us carefully. "If you decide otherwise, feel free to speak with me,"

The three of them rushed away, all deep in thought. Once they were a safe enough distance away, Percy stopped them.

"We have to find Nico. Find that Voldemort guy," he said darkly, twirling Riptide, now in pen form, between his fingers.

"There's not much we can do until Dumbledore gets back. We don't know where this guy is hiding, or where he's keeping Nico," Annabeth said. "For now, we have to keep a low profile," She laced her fingers through Percy's and gave his hand a comforting squeeze.

"We'll find him, Percy. I'm sure of it," Grover said. "Nico's survived some pretty tough things. He'll be alright," Grover hoped that his statement was true.

**I'm sorry this chapter didn't focus as much on G-man, but I am planning for him to go on a little side adventure of his own, so that's coming up soon! :d**


	17. Chapter XVII: Hermione

**Hello my lovely readers! I hope you're having a super awesome day!**

**I know this isn't the Hogwarts schedule (One day before classes) but I hope none of you will mind.**

**Also, this is my last chapter. EVER! I wrapped up the story and I am signing off for good. It's been an amazing run, but my life is too full right now**

**Thanks for sticking along for the ride**

**...**

**_Hermione_**

Hermione sat in the courtyard with Ron and Harry, flipping through books about American schools half heartedly. Now that she had connected with Annabeth over Greek mythology, she felt guilty prying into their lives, trying to uncover some possibly non existent secret. She pushed it aside, knowing it was better to be safe than to find out they were hiding something dangerous.

Hermione sighed and lifted her head. She looked out over the courtyard, watching the students as they went about their business. Reading, laughing, talking, enjoying their time before classes began the next day.

Across the yard, Hermione spotted Percy, Annabeth, and Grover. They walked over to an empty bench, talking with sad, defeated expressions on their faces. Hermione watched them and wondered why they were so morose. They had been fine during Quidditch.

"I'll be right back," Hermione said to Ron and Harry, her curiosity taking over. She stood up, leaving her books on the ground.

"Where're you going?" Ron asked her, looking up from Harry and his game of Wizard's Chess. Like usual, Ron was winning.

"I just want to ask Annabeth a few questions," Hermione replied before turning away.

"Be careful!" Ron whisper-screamed after her. Hermione rolled her eyes and smiled and the same time. His caution was reaching long extents, though his worry was almost endearing.

"Hello," she said, somewhat cautiously, hoping she hadn't intruded. "I was sitting back there with Harry and Ron and thought I'd come over,"

Hermione noticed that Annabeth was rolling one of nine clay beads on a leather cord in between her fingers. Each had a different symbol, though Hermione could not make out each individual one.

When none of them said anything to her, Hermione asked, "Is everything alright?"

"Yeah," Annabeth sighed. "We just found out that Percy's cousin is... well, he got into some trouble," Her grey eyes flickered to Percy, who was staring at the ground, holding a pen tightly in his hand.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Hermione said sympathetically. "I hope he's alright," Percy gave her a firm, yet thankful nod before returning his gaze to the ground.

"I know this probably isn't the best time, but I was wondering if you were given your schedules yet," Hermione asked. She thought a good way to learn more about the exchange students was to watch them work, so Hermione was hoping to be in some of their classes.

"No, not yet," Grover said shortly. Around Grover's neck, Hermione noticed a similar necklace to Annabeth's, though his has had many more beads than hers.

"Oh... well, okay then," Hermione said awkwardly. And then, after standing there for a second more, she turned and walked back towards Ron and Harry.

"What'd you ask?" Harry asked, looking up from the chess match.

"If they had their schedules yet. Apparently no," she replied, dropping back down on the ground to continue reading.

"Bishop to C4," Ron said aloud, his piece sliding across the board. "Check mate," he said simply, as the bishop came to life and knocked over Harry's king with a small crack. Hermione winced.

"I can't believe you ever played that game after what happened in our first year," she said, shaking her head. Ron and Harry simply shrugged.

"Can you see if Percy has a necklace, leather cord, with different beads. Annabeth and Grover have similar ones. It's probably nothing, but everything we know about them is one step closer to learning what is wrong," Hermione said.

"Sure," Harry said.

"Why? They're just necklaces," Ron wondered. Hermione shrugged and let out a deep sigh.

"I don't know,"

"So, I saw you talking to them on the bleachers during the tryouts," Ron said with a trace of spite in his voice. "Getting pretty friendly,"

"We were just talking," Hermione said. "Turns out, Annabeth knows quite a lot about Greek mythology,"

"Well, is there anything about their school in those books?" Harry asked, switching the topic.

"Nothing yet," Hermione replied, turning one of the pages.

"I don't know about you all, but I'm starving," Ron said. "And I can't focus on anything until I get some food," Hermione shook her head slightly, amazed that Ron could make any conversation relate to eating.

The three of them made their way to the lunch room, Ron and Harry talking about Quidditch and Hermione reading while she walked, a skill she had trained herself to do.

After a few minutes at the table, Percy joined them, dropping down on the bench heavily and put his head in his hands.

"You look like hell," Ron commented.

"My cousin, Nico, got into some truble," Percy muttered. At hearing the name, Nico, Harry straightened up abruptly. Hermione looked at him strangely, and he replied with a look that read _I'll tell you later_.

"What kind of trouble?" Harry asked slowly. Percy looked up for a moment before dropping his head again.

"Snooping around in other people's business," he said curtly. Hermione couldn't tell if his comment was an underhanded way of telling them to back off or if his cousin really was invading other people's lives. None the less, they dropped the subject.

Lunch seemed to pass quickly for Hermione, though that was because she was reading the entire time. She had a few small bites, but was searching each page feverishly for any mention of the American's school.

After they were finished eating, Harry motioned for Ron and Hermione to follow quickly. They followed him up the staircase as Harry spoke in a quiet, yet urgent, tone.

"My dream the other night, the one with the man sitting on the throne, and his son was there, and they were talking about Tom Riddle," he said.

"Yeah," Ron said, sounding unsure of the relevance to the conversation.

"Well, the son's name was Nico,"

"Just like Percy's cousin!" Hermione exclaimed, her eyes growing wide. "Do you think it could be the same person?" she wondered.

"Well, he had an American accent, so it's possible," Harry noted. "It's definitely worth looking into, especially because the man on the throne told Nico to find how Tom Riddle is alive,"

"How are we supposed to do that? Go up to Percy and say 'Lovely weather, eh? Oh, and by the way, is your cousin trying to find out why the Dark Lord is still alive?'" Ron asked sarcastically. Though it surprised Hermione, Ron was right. If the American's started to suspect that Harry, Ron, and Hermione were suspicious of their identities, their walls would shoot up and there would be no way of learning who they really are.

"We need to be subtle, about everything. They can't know we're suspicious of them," she voiced.

"I think they already know," Harry said, a trace of humor in his voice. "We're not the most subtle either,"

They walked up the stairs towards the Gryffindor common room, but on the way, Ron stopped them.

"Look over there," he said, pointing down the hallway.

Hermione looked to see where he was pointing and her eyes landed on Grover. He was running down the hall with his hands on his head, his hat not covering his hair for once.

"What is he doing?" Harry wondered.

"Let's go find out," Ron suggested.

They hurried over to where Grover had disappeared around the corner, but he had disappeared. They circled around and back to the great hall, and then doubled back one last time. People didn't just disappear like that.

"Where did he go?" Ron wondered, growling slightly.

"I just wish we could find out what they are," Harry exclaimed, exasperated.

Then, as the turned into the same deserted corridor for the third time, Hermione saw a door that had not been there before.

Simultaneously, they all said, "The Room of Requirements,"

**APRIL FOOLS!**

**This isn't my last chapter! My life isn't full! LOL! Biggest lie EVER!**

**However, this chapter is dedicated to Fred and George Weasley, in honor of April Fools Day. May the tricksters be with you! (I know, it's the end of the day, but whatever)**

**So, I'm thinking Ron next, then go back to Grover for his special adventure, then I'm putting Grover on the side table for a bit and going back to either Harry or Annabeth... I have to write before I plan...**

**Mairead (Guest): CREDIT for the idea of Hermione noticing the necklaces. (I don't think Grover actually has a necklace in the books, but it's good for suspicions) Yay to you! You're awesome! The idea has only been partially finished, so bear with me! The rest will come soon.**

***AUTHOR UPDATE***

**ALSO, I recently saw ****_The Croods_**** and I LOVED IT SO FREAKING MUCH! GUY! 3 So, after this, and the HTTYD/Brave I've been working on on the side, expect some Croods :p**

**Last bit of AN (sorry it is so long, I have a lot to say!) I am going to be posting the first chapter of HTTYD/Brave very soon, just after I go over it again (it's been a while), so I hope you enjoy that! If you want to read it, then keep an eye on my profile, or you can click the Author Alert button! YAY**

**You all are amazing people! Have a happy day/night! And I'm sorry about the super long AN**


	18. Chapter XVIII: Ron

**Down below, there are some greek words. I'm going to bold them so you don't think I put gibberish in. They will become relevant later in the story.**

**ALSO, I'M SOOO SORRY! I FEEL AS IF I HAVEN'T UPDATED IN FOREVER!**

**_Ron_**

Ron was the first to enter through the doors, eager to find out where Grover had disappeared to. However, one they were inside, he was disappointed to see the room was almost entirely empty, and Grover was nowhere to be found.

In the centre of the room, there was a triangular stone pedestal, upon which sat an old, leather bound book. On each side of the stone pedestal was a different carving. He circled around it to get a better view of each side, crouching low to inspect each carving.

On one side, there was a carving of a woman, with an owl flying over her. She wore some sort of strange armor and carried a shield with an ugly woman's face on it. Under her feet, strange shapes and symbols were written. It read "**Αθηνά**"

The second side of the column showed a man holding what appeared to be a gigantic fork. A wave pattern was etched into the background behind him, and at his feet were strange symbols that looked like "**Ποσειδῶν**"

The third, and final side, was of a goat that stood on it's hind legs. He had large horns coming from his forehead and looked forwards with human-like eyes. His chest was that of a human's, and in his hand he held a strange object that was made up of what Ron thought were straws. Under his hooves, "**Παν**" was written in the save strange writing as on the other sides.

Ron examined the writing on each side again, wondering what the symbols represented.

"What is this?" he wondered allowed.

"Hermione?" Harry asked, hopefully.

"I'm not sure," Hermione admitted after a short pause. She opened up the book that sat on top of the stand and flipped through the pages. "All this writing is in... I'm pretty sure it's Ancient Greek..."

"How do you know?" Ron asked, peering over her shoulder.

"I did some reading about Greek mythology over the summer, so I did a bit of a research Ancient Greek as a language too," Hermione explained, shrugging her shoulders.

"Why would there be some dusty old Greek book in here. I didn't ask for it," Ron said, standing up to get a closer look at the writing in the book. The letters were similar to those on the stone pedestal.

"I don't know... maybe I was thinking about Greek Mythology," Hermione suggested half heartedly.

"Well, Grover isn't even in here," Harry said, looking around the otherwise empty room.

"Hey, Hermione, do you think you could translate what this says?" Ron asked, squinting at the old book.

"It would take some time, but I think I can," Hermione said, turning the pages slowly. "I just have to go get a different book from my room,"

"Alright, let's go,"

They walked out of the room of requirements and returned to the Gryffindor common room. Ron and Harry waited on the couch, while Hermione went up stairs to get some dictionary. Ron watched as she hurried up the stairs to the girl's dormitories.

Hermione returned a moment later and suggested the go back down to the courtyard where they could talk away from the rest of the Gryffindor students.

As they walked down the stairs, Harry asked a question that had been lurking at the back of Ron's mind "Do you think that this Greek stuff could be somehow related to who the American's actually are?" he asked. Hermione let out a nervous laugh.

"No, no way... how could they be? That isn't... no, that's not even possible. Greek myths are just... myths!" she exclaimed, shaking her head. The way she spoke made it seem as if she were trying to convince herself.

"Is there something in Greek mythology that seem look they're human?" Ron asked. Hermione paused for a moment, and then shook her head.

"Greek myths aren't real," she emphasized.

"Well, that's what I thought about wizards until I found out about Hogwarts," Harry said. "Isn't that what you thought too?"

"Well... yes, but..." Hermione sighed and shook her head and returned her attention to the books. "I'm just not sure," she murmured.

They reached the courtyard and positioned themselves far away from everyone else under the shade of an oak tree. There was a long ten minutes of silence that passed until Hermione looked up from the book.

"From what I've been able to get through, it seems like this book is telling the story of Kronos," Hermione said.

"Kronos?" Ron wondered. He looked at Harry questioningly, but all he got was a shrug and a look as confused as his own.

"He was... how to put this simply... he was the father of the Greek gods, a Titan. His children were..." And then came what Ron thought to be one of the longest, most grueling lectures of his life. Hermione rambled on about Kronos, and how his sons chopped him into little pieces and threw him into a bottomless pit.

"So, what does that have to do with the exchange students?" Harry asked.

"Nothing at all," Hermione said. "I'll keep reading, but I don't know how I'll ever make it through this entire book," she said.

"What book?" a new voice said. Ron looked up to see his sister walking up towards them. Dean Thomas followed behind her.

"Oh, nothing," Ron said, shooting his friends a look telling them not to reveal their findings. He trusted his sister in full, but the less people who knew about it, the better.

"Well, alright then..." Ginny said slowly. "Come on, Dean, why don't we go somewhere else," she suggested. Dean nodded and took Ginny's hand, leading her in the opposite direction.

"Huh. Ginny and Dean. I never would've thought... whatever," Harry said, shaking his head. Ron and Hermione both turned to look at him, and Harry seemed to turn red.

"Anyways," Hermione began. "I don't think anything in these books are going to tell us anything about the Americans," She sighed. "Maybe... maybe we should just drop this whole thing," Ron looked at her with a puzzled expression.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, they aren't hurting anyone. They just have some strange quirks," she reasoned. "Maybe we should just be-"

"Be friends?" Ron exclaimed, cutting her off.

"Yes, Ron! Because that isn't exactly the most unheard of thing!" Hermione snapped suddenly. Ron was taken aback by her outburst. "Annabeth is perfectly nice, Grover doesn't do any harm whatsoever, and Percy's just sour because his cousin could be in trouble. Wouldn't you be?"

Ron turned to Harry, asking for his opinion. "And what do you think?" Harry paused.

"Well... Hermione could have a point," he said. Ron frowned at him. Harry added quickly "That isn't to say we shouldn't be on alert. But maybe we could do that even more if we were closer with them," Ron was silent for a moment, pursing his lips.

"Fine. I'll be nice, but don't expect me to become best mate's with them," Ron grumbled reluctantly.

All of a sudden, a scream pierced the air. The trio leaped to their feet and headed towards the entrance hall where the scream came from. Three more distressed voices chimed in, followed by dozens more. A horde of first years, who had probably been touring the grounds, ran in, followed by a Head Boy and Girl. Some were crying, others screaming, and a few had curled up on the floor.

The Head Boy was holding one of the kids in his arms who was passed out. Ron ran up to him and asked "What happened?"

"At- at the Forbidden Forest. It chased us here. It's-it's outside the castle. The barrier is... is keeping it out,"

"Keeping what out?" Harry asked over all the noise.

"Some sort of... bull. It was chasing us," he choked out.

Ron, Harry, and Hermione exchanged confused looks.

"Where would a bull come from?" Ron asked.

"Come on," Harry said to them. Ron felt his stomach twist for a brief second. The image of some sort of terrible monster flashed in his eyes, but he followed Harry, nonetheless.

Just outside the magical barrier of the castle, which rippled faintly when the creature came to close, a larger-than-life bull pawed at the ground aggressively.

Hermione gasped and clamped her hand over her mouth. Ron could hear muffled words, though he couldn't make out what she was saying.

"That's one big bull," Harry said, taking a small step backwards. Ron nodded and followed his friend's example of backing up. The three of them each took their wands in their hands incase the bull somehow broke through the barrier.

"I've got to be seeing things..." Hermione murmured. Ron was about to ask what she meant, when Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape, and the new potions teacher, Professor Slughorn.

"Potter! Weasley! Granger! What the devil are you doing out here? Get inside!" she exclaimed.

"But it's just a..." Ron began, but he stopped himself when the beast seemed to flicker. For a moment, he thought the monster was standing on it's hind legs. He blinked a few times, and the bull returned to normal. "A bull," he finished slowly.

"What's happening?" yet another new voice asked. Percy and Annabeth appeared beside them. They both gasped and stared at the bull in disbelief.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me," Percy exclaimed.

Annabeth reached into her pocket and took out her wand. It looked almost as if it was glowing. Hermione yelped and jumped back, pointing at the wand. Percy also had his wand in his hand. The two of them ran out of the barrier to where the bull stood.

"Back already?" Percy asked angrily. The bull snorted, as if he was trying to respond. Then, it charged.

Percy and Annabeth maneuvered away, dodging the hull and shooting spells at the bull, swinging their arms in large, swinging motions that would normally cause a spell to backfire.

"Mr. Jackson! Miss Chase! Get back here!" Professor McGonagall yelled.

"That isn't possible. How do they have weapons. They're battling a minotaur. This is-" Hermione stammered She looked as if she was going to pass out.

Suddenly, Percy let out a short cry. The bull had charged straight at him, knocking him off his feet. Just as the bull was about to pound his hoof down on her, Annabeth cast another spell, jabbing her wand forwards towards the bull. The animal let out a distressed cry, and, in the blink of an eye, disappeared.

There was a moment of complete and utter silence from the teachers and the students that had gathered at the doors to catch a glimpse of the action. Percy got up and jogged over to Annabeth, seemingly unharmed, and checked to see if she was alright. Both their wands were now out of sight.

"Mr. Jackson, Miss Chase. Come with me this instant," Professor McGonagall said, breaking the silence. "You three as well," she said, looking at Ron, Harry, and Hermione in turn.

"Why us?" Ron asked.

"You three _always_ have an input," she said, before turning away and walking inside the castle, the students parting to let her, along with the five students, past.

**RAWR!**

**Sorry if the beginning was slow... and that I went dinosaur... RAWR!**

**Anyways, I feel like this chapter was kind of all over the place, but I hope you still enjoyed it anyways!**

*******_With end-of-cartoon-narrarator-voice_***** What was the mysterious bull-beast? Why was Hermione in such distress? Where has Grover gone? Will the Trio finally find out the truth about...er... the Trio? Find out next time on... HALF-BLOODS OF ALL SORTS!**


	19. Chapter XIX: Grover

**YAY! UPDATE!**

**I just want to say, that I'm sorry for playing an April Fools joke an all of you two updates ago... please forgive me!**

**Also, last chapter, I forgot to credit someone for the idea of a monster coming and the Percy and Annabeth have to defend the students. So, thank you "Saphira Nograd", and I'll probably be expanding on it :)**

**_Grover_**

Grover's day started out fine. He woke up from a pleasant, dreamless sleep, had a riveting conversation with Justin and Ernie about the different plants at the greenhouses in Hogwarts, and then got to hang out with Annabeth and Percy, without having to fight monsters.

A perfectly relaxing morning, that is, until everything with Nico's psycho tree happened. After that, things began to go down hill.

The sandwiches that were served at lunch were quite unappealing to Grover, so he was left hungry and upset. Afterwards, unable to find Percy or Annabeth, he made his way out of the dining hall and up the stairs. He intended to go up to the seventh floor and find Percy at the Gryffindor common room, but when he got up there, he found himself lost in the corridors, unable to remember where it was.

Grover walked aimlessly through the halls before he spotted a small group of students walking in through a hidden door behind a painting. He craned his neck to see if he could spot Percy anywhere.

Suddenly, he was knocked over by a boy with slicked back blonde hair. Grover's hat fell to the ground as well, but was kicked away by the same person who plowed him over. Grover looked up at the boy, and recognized him as the same one who had bumped into Harry at Diagon Alley only two days before, Draco Malfoy.

"Watch where you're going," Draco sneered, standing over him and crossing his arms.

"Excuse me, but, technically, you bumped into me," Grover said, standing up and covering his exposed head. He tried to move around Draco to get to his hat, hoping no one nearby had the ability to see through the Mist that veiled his horns.

"Oh, you're one of the Americans," Draco drawled, stepping in his path and rolling his eyes. "I had the displeasure of meeting your little blonde friend. I'm surprised she was sorted into Ravenclaw. Only intelligent people go there. And anyone with half a brain would know not to _cross me_," Although Grover didn't know what he meant by Annabeth "crossing him", it sure sounded like he was insulting her.

"Don't insult my friends," Grover said sharply. Draco sneered and turned around, heading in the opposite direction. Much to Grover's dismay, Draco kicked his hat again, sending sliding further down the hall. Grover couldn't tell whether it was intentional or not.

"Hey!" Grover exclaimed.

"What, it's just a stupid hat," Draco laughed, picking up Grover's hat from the ground.

"Give it back," Grover said, reaching out his hand cautiously.

Draco laughed and sprinted down the hall, past a group of students. Grover pushed past them to follow them, but running in fake shoes is a lot more difficult than it seems. He must ran in the a circle at least three times. All he wanted was to get his hat back from Draco.

As he rounded the corner a third time, Grover noticed a door he hadn't seen before. Thinking Draco may have gone in there, he poked his head into the room.

"D-Draco? Give me my hat back," Grover called, stepping into the room dimly lit. The door closed behind him, causing a short scream to escape Grover's lips. When he turned to the door again, however, it had disappeared.

"Oh no," he said aloud. Grover put his hand on the now blank wall and knocked on it.

"Hello? Anyone out there?" he called. There was no response from the outside. "I'm stuck in here! And someone stole my hat!" he yelled. Still no answer.

Grover sighed and, instead of smacking a wall and yelling at it, looked for another exit. The cluttered room that was filled with an odd assortment of objects, spanning the entire room. They were arranged on shelves, in large, unorganized stacks, and scattered on the floor.

He walked further into the room, his footsteps echoing through against the stone walls. Draco was nowhere to be seen, and neither was his hat. He did, however, come across an empty soda can which he snacked on, trying to soothe his nerves with his favourite comfort food: aluminum.

"How did I get out of here," Grover thought aloud as he passed a wooden structure that resembled an outhouse.

"Hello?" a slightly muffled voice called suddenly. He had the same British accent as everyone else in the school. Grover spun around. He didn't smell any monsters, so that was a good sign, but mysterious invisible people talking to him wasn't.

"Who's there?" Grover called out, his voice shaking.

"Come over here and find out, why don't you!"

"Where are you?" Grover asked tentatively, turning in a slow circle.

"If I knew, I wouldn't need help, now would I," the voice snapped. "Just follow my voice,"

"Well... uh... keep talking,"

"Who are you, anyways? You don't sound like the normal boy who comes and goes through here. He's the one who covered me up, trapped me here. You have a very interesting accent. Where are you from? Well, answer me boy," the voice demanded. Grover walked towards the source.

"I'm an exchange student from America," he answered slowly.

"America, really,"

"Yes, me and my two friends are here because our school is under renovations," Grover recited.

"Oh? And what school is that?"

"'Mr. Bruner's Academy for the Gifted',"

"That sounds like a very convincing story, but you and I both know that isn't true," the voice continued. Grover's stomach twisted in a knot. How could he possibly know that.

"Yes it is," Grover insisted, though his voice betrayed him and shook like a madman.

"Really, well, last time I checked, there is no such school in existence. Given, I has been a while, but-"

"Are you here behind this cloth?" Grover asked slowly.

"Well, you have ears, don't you boy? Can't you hear that's where my voice is coming from?" the voice snapped again. Grover slowly lifted the white sheet that covered a head-to-toe portrait of a man dressed in colourful robes and holding a cane. For a second, Grover was confused. Then, all of a sudden, the man in the painting began moving. He stretched his arms over his heads, leaning his cane against the chair in the background.

"Ah, yes, finally! I'm freed from that white prison!" the man exclaimed. Grover let out a small yelp and dropped the sheet. "What? Never seen a talking painting before?" Grover shook his head slowly, caught in a daze.

"Well, than, allow me to introduce myself. I'm Joseph Huttington the Seventeenth. Pleased to make your acquaintance," he said, giving a small bow.

"Uh, hi," Grover said. "I'm Grover Underwood...the First,"

"Well, Grover, it has been very nice chatting with you, but if you wouldn't mind taking me out of here and to Dumbledore's office so he can hang me up in the halls again- I'm sure he's been searching everywhere for me- I would be ever so grateful,"

"I would but... the door disappeared," he said, looking over his shoulder.

"Oh, pity. Someone must have entered the room somewhere else," he sighed.

"Uh, what do you mean?" Grover asked. Joseph seemed surprise.

"My boy, don't you know where you are? You are in the Room of Lost Things, just one of the many forms that the Room of Requirement takes," he said. Grover stared at him blankly. "The Room of Requirements. Oh, you know, you walk down the corridor three times thinking of what you need and the door to the room will appear and provide you with what you asked..." Joseph's voice trailed off, realizing Grover still didn't understand.

"When someone enters the Room of Requirements in search of something, but it already in use, the room is supposed to be reset. Now, someone entered a different room of the Room of Requirements, so until they are gone, we'll have to stay here,"

"Great," Grover mumbled. "And I still haven't found my hat,"

"A hat you say? Well, there's a rather sharp looking one just there on that bench," Joseph said, pointing his cane over Grover's shoulder. He turned and saw a grey fedora with navy blue stripes sitting on a bench piled with an assortment of clothing. Grover picked it up, dusted it off, and placed it on his head. It was slightly large on his head, but he was just glad he didn't have to worry about anyone spotting his horns.

"So, if we're going to be in here for a while, why don't you tell me a bit about yourself?" Joseph asked, sitting down on the armchair painted in the background of the portrait.

"There isn't much to tell," Grover mumbled.

"Oh, pish-posh!" Joseph said, banging his cane on the ground soundlessly. "You come from a whole other continent. I'm sure you have many interesting tales to tell," he said, leaning forwards and grinning.

"Not really," Grover said. It wasn't like he was Lord of the Wild, and or a satyr or anything.

"What a shame. I do like a good story," Joseph sighed wearily. "Ah, well, none the less, some company is better than none,"

"How long have you been in here?" Grover asked. Joseph paused for a moment, scratching his cleanly shaven chin.

"Two years, give or take," he said, shrugging his shoulders.

"How did you even get in here?" Grover asked with wide eyes, his interest in the man's-painting's- story growing. Joseph smiled and began to recount his story of how he used to be in the halls of the professor's rooms, but one night, he saw the Defense Against the Dark Arts Teacher stumbling by. Mad Eye Moody. In front of his very eyes, Mad Eye began to change into none other than Bartimus Crouch Jr. Crouch cast a spell so he couldn't leave his own painting and placed him in the Room of Lost Things, though Joseph never fully understood why. Even though the names meant nothing to Grover, he was intrigued.

"How did he change form like that?" he asked.

"Oh, I suspect it was pollyjuice potion," Joseph said thoughtfully.

Grover paused for a minute, trying to process what he had said. "And that let's you change form...?" Joseph laughed and nodded.

"Look at you, you're like a first year! So eager and curious," Joseph said. "Ah! Look at that! the door, right there!" he cried, pointing with his cane. Grover turned around and let out a relieved sigh.

"How long has it been there do you think?" Grover asked.

"Oh, quite a while, I guess. That is no short tale," Joseph said. "Now, onwards my stubbly friend! To Dumbledore!"

Grover picked up Joseph's frame and carried him out the door. Grover took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the light before walking down the stairs. As he neared the bottom, he heard cries of distress. Nerves began picking away at his stomach.

Joseph let out a resounding sigh and said. "Now I wonder what that could be?"

***Short AN***

**I hope you liked it!**

**So, next chapter will most likely be Annabeth :)**

**Also, sorry if there are mistakes. I really wanted to get this out to you so I had very minimal editing.**

**Alright, bye bye!**


	20. Chapter XX: Annabeth

**I'm sorry. I try to update, I really do. Exams are coming up at my school though.**

**_Annabeth_**

Annabeth walked beside Percy, a wave of students splitting apart to let them through. In front of them, McGonagall walked with a fast pace up the stairs. Annabeth could hear Ron and Harry talking in hushed, urgent tones.

"First the Empousae, now the Minotaur, I think everyone's out to get me," Percy mumbled spitefully. Annabeth looked at him out of the corner of her eye. It had definitely _not_ been an easy few weeks. "Next thing you now, the Fates will be breathing down my neck," Annabeth slapped his arm, visions of the Fates she had seen a few days ago. For a moment, Percy gave her a "what was that for" look, before he realized why she was so upset and began spluttering apologies.

"I... Annabeth-I... sorry, I didn't..."

"It's fine," she mumbled, heaving a sigh. Sometimes, he could be such a Seaweed Brain. He slipped his hand into hers and gave it a light, assuring squeeze.

"Percy! Annabeth!" Grover yelled, almost tripping down the stairs. In his hands, he held a large painting of a man dressed in colourful robes and leaning his weight on a cane. "What was that screaming?" he asked frantically.

"Minotaur," Annabeth answered shortly.

"We took care of it," Percy said, patting his pocket where Riptide sat. A nervous look passed over Grover's face.

"Why didn't I smell it?" he wondered. Percy shrugged.

"Uh, Grover, not to criticize your fashion choice or anything, but why are you wearing a fedora?" Percy asked. Annabeth had been so deep in thought about how the Minotaur followed them, she hadn't noticed the grey and blue striped fedora sitting over his curly mop of hair.

"Long story," he sighed, pulling it down over his hair even more than it already was.

They reached Professor McGonagall's office and walked into the tidy room. There was a wooden desk with neatly arranged quills and ink, with a fresh roll of parchment ready to be written on. There was a fireplace on the left side of the room, and a cabinet opposite it. Books and other strange looking items lined shelves and display cases scattered around the room, and there was a small set of stairs in the corner.

McGonagall sat down at her desk. Across from he were two empty chairs, which none of the students took.

"Now, explain to me what happened," she said, folding her hands tightly. Annabeth could see the anxiousness in her eyes.

"We were just in the courtyard when we heard some screaming," Harry started.

"And Annabeth and I were just walking down the stairs when we heard it," Percy said, cutting in.

"One of the Head Boys who were touring the first years told us that there was a bull outside," Harry continued, ignoring Percy entirely.

"A little kid told us that it came out of the woods and chased after them," Percy contributed

"So we came out to see what was happening, and then the rest of the Professors came," Harry added.

"Then we ran outside," Percy continued, disregarding the fact that Harry was telling his side of the story as well.

"And that's when they showed up," Harry finished, pointing at Percy and Annabeth. Percy said nothing this time.

"I don't know whether to be angry or impressed. You put yourself in danger when others were in a daze of confusion. I commend your ability to function under pressure," she said. Annabeth sighed. It seemed as if they would get off the hook.

"However, the magic you used is unlike any I have seen. Now, understand I mean no disrespect, but the only magic that could accomplish what yours did would be affiliated with the Dark Arts. The use of magic such as that is not permitted here at Hogwarts, and I am sure if Headmaster Dumbledore were here, he would say the same thing,"

"It's an experimental type of Battle magic," Annabeth blurted out. "We use it all the time in America. It combines classical swordsmanship with magic force. Invented by the founder of our school, Professor Brunner," Professor McGonagall looked at her skeptically, and Annabeth just prayed to the gods she was believable enough.

"I see," she said slowly. "Well, let me make it perfectly clear that this type of magic reflects badly on yourselves. I will award each of your houses twenty points for you valiant efforts. Now, I-" McGonagall stopped short and stared over Annabeth's shoulder at Grover.

"Mr. Underwood? Why are you here?" she asked.

"Oh, I have this, uh... well, I found him," Grover said, holding out the portrait. The man in it had changed position and was sitting on the chair painted into the background.

"Ah, Minerva, how nice to see you again!" he said, springing to life. Annabeth stared at the moving and speaking man in fascination.

"Joseph, where on earth did you disappear to?" Professor McGonagall wondered.

"Oh, here and there. It was that fellow, Crouch, was it? Tell me he isn't still teaching here! Well, I suppose you would've seen him only as Mad-Eye at the time, but all the same-"

"Neither are employed here any more and the real Alastor Moody was rescued. Not to worry," she said.

"Well, off you go," McGonagall said. She took the painting from Grover and the six students exited into the hall.

"Alright, what's going on?" Ron asked.

"What do you mean?" Annabeth asked, playing innocent.

"You know bloody well what I mean. We all saw that magic you were using. McGonagall said herself it looked like Dark Magic," he said.

"We told you-" Percy started. Ron didn't listen. He shook his head and walked away without another word.

"Ron!" Harry called after him, jogging to catch up with his friend. Hermione was the only one left behind. She had not said a word the entire time. Annabeth could tell she was scared of them.

"Sorry," she whispered quietly before taking off after her friends. Once she disappeared around the corner, all three of them turned to face each other.

"Do you anyone saw?" Grover asked.

"It's possible," Percy sighed, dropping his head.

"We have to lay low for a while. I mean it. Nothing out of the ordinary. We start using our wands, stop talking about monsters," she said. There was a long pause before Percy spoke.

"What about Nico?" he asked softly. Annabeth bit her lip. With all that had happened with the Minotaur, how to help Nico had been pushed out of her mind.

"We can't do anything until for a week. I can IM Chiron later, but until Voldemort comes back or we can find him, we just have to wait," Annabeth said, remembering what the snake-like man had said: _"Return here in one week with the answers to my questions, or I will not be so merciful."_ His words frightened Annabeth. She worried about what would happen to Nico, and where he was.

"Sorry, Percy," Grover said. Percy dropped his gaze.

"Hey," Annabeth said, picking his head up gently and forcing him to look her at her. "We'll find Nico, okay?" Percy nodded and smiled thankfully.

"I think we should go see Harry, Ron, and Hermione and convince them we're not evil. We can't protect them very well if they don't trust us," Percy said, changing the topic.

"Wow, Seaweed Brain. That's some really smart thinking!" Annabeth said, feigning surprise. Percy smiled, and even though it was a small one, it made Annabeth's heart flutter all the same. She slipped her arm around his waist and along with Grover, they began their search for the three wizards.

They found them in the Gryffindor common room, surrounded by a crowd of other students. When they walked in, all eyes turned towards them. The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

"Yes?" Ron asked dryly.

"Can we talk to you outside for a second?" Annabeth asked, looking at Harry, Ron, and Hermione individually.

"You can say it right here," Ron said stubbornly. Annabeth looked around the room at all the students.

"We wanted to say we hope you're okay," she said, with very little truth in her voice. Then, she turned on her heel to leave the room, Grover and Percy following after her.

"Can't say we didn't try," she mumbled.

"Come on, Wise Girl. How about we go to the library," Percy suggested before they walked out into the corridor. Annabeth smiled at him gratefully.

"That'd be perfect,"

**Ah, libraries. The perfect place for Annabeth to calm down in a non-physical knife fighting way :)**

**So, suspicions are getting high! What will happen next? STAY TUNED!**


	21. Chapter XXI: Harry

**Hopefully this update didn't take forever.**

**_Harry_**

Harry watched as the three Americans left the room, talking to each other quietly. Once they were gone, chatter broke out among the rest of the Gryffindor students.

"Go on, what else did McGonagall say?" Seamus asked. They had been informing everyone on their meeting.

"Well, like we said, she told us their magic looked like Dark Magic, and the Americans came up with some excuse like it was a new type of battle magic or something, like they were sword fighting. Loony, the lot of them," Ron said.

"What happened after?"

"I asked them what happened, what _really_ happened, and they went along saying how they were 'telling the truth' and they 'didn't do anything wrong'. Making up all sorts of excuses," Ron exclaimed. "We left them in the corridor, and they followed us back here,"

After a while the students began to disperse and break off into their own groups, some sticking around, others leaving to their dormitories or out into the halls.

"Ron, Harry, I have to tell you something," Hermione said quietly. It was the first thing Harry had heard her say since the bull attack. She looked scared and troubled.

"What's wrong?" Ron asked, concern streaking his voice. She took a deep breath, her brown eyes flickering with uncertainty.

"I think that... I mean, it seems like... it could be that... oh, never mind..." she said, stopping herself. She shook her head and sat down on the couch.

"What is it?" Harry pressed.

"Nothing,"

"Hermione," Ron said pleadingly.

"You'll say I'm mad!"

"Tell us!" Harry exclaimed.

"Just... just give me a while to figure things out," Hermione said, putting her hands up to tell the boys to stop. "Please,"

"Alright," Harry relented, though his curiosity was growing.

"Are you alright, though?" Ron asked.

"I'm fine, honestly," she responded. Harry looked back and forth between his two friends. Ron, suddenly aware of Harry watching him, blushed deep red and straightened up, looking down at his feet.

"Well, uh, I aught to go finish unpacking," he said. "Harry, want to come?"

"Oh, I already finished," Harry said. Ron jerked his head towards their dormitory, making it clear he wanted Harry to follow him. "But I'll come anyways," he said.

"Bye," Hermione said.

"Tell us when you've figured whatever it is out," Ron called back to her.

Ron and Harry walked up to their room where Neville was sitting on the edge of his bed flipping through a Herbology textbook. The door closed behind them with a heavy _clunk_.

"What was that for, Harry?" Ron exclaimed, punching Harry's shoulder

"Ow! What was _what_ for?" he wondered, completely oblivious to what Ron was yelling about.

"You know bloody well what for! That look earlier!"

"What look?"

"The _look_ when I was talking with Hermione,"

"Oh, you fancy her, do you?" Neville piped up, grinning innocently.

"No!" Ron exclaimed, blushing once more.

"Ron, you're red as a tomato, calm down," Harry laughed, lying back on his bed. Ron crossed his arms and flopped down on his bed. He pulled his wand out of his pocket and pointed it at his trunk.

"_Alohamora,"_ Ron said. The trunk flew open, revealing a messy heap of clothing. Ron stared at it for a moment, then lay down on his bed. "I'll do it tomorrow," he shrugged.

"How'd that bull even get so close to the castle? And why did it?" Harry wondered.

"What was Percy and Annabeth's magic like?" Neville asked. He hadn't been able

"It was like they were trying to slice the bull with their wands," he said.

"What d'you think Hermione was blubbering on about downstairs?" Ron wondered.

"Who knows, but if it gets us somewhere, we shouldn't question it," Harry said pointedly. Ron shrugged in agreement and sat down on his unmade bed.

Just then, the door swung open. Percy strode in and stood in the middle of the room, as if not expecting the other three boys to be there. He froze for a moment, before laughing nervously and walking to his bed.

"Sorry, I'm used to having my own room," he said. He leaned over and dug around into his small duffel bag that was beside his bed. Harry caught sight of a leather cord with four beads around his neck. He pulled out a small bag that jingled with coins. "See ya,"

"Where do you think he's going with that?" Harry wondered.

"Wonder what's in that bag of his..." Ron said. He and Harry shared a brief look before walking slowly towards Percy's bag.

"Just looks like a bunch of clothes," Ron said, poking it with his foot. Harry knelt down and, without touching the bag, spotted Percy's wand.

"Did you see Percy put his wand in his bag?" Harry asked. Ron shook his head.

"No, he just took that bag of coins," he said. "Why?"

Harry pulled the wand out of Percy's bag and held it up like a dirty diaper of a baby. "If his wand is in here, then how could he have fought off the bull?"

"Maybe he has another wand?" Neville guessed.

"Yeah, sure, he just wanted a backup wand then," Harry said sarcastically. "However they beat the bull, they weren't using magic,"

**Now, I know this chapter was uneventful, but I assure you, something you've all been waiting for is in the next chapter.**


	22. Chapter XXII: Hermione

**INTENSE STUFF!**

**_Hermione_**

Hermione sat on her bed and wrote a list of anything remotely suspicious they had uncovered about the exchange students.

_They came all the way from America_

_They had no wands_

_Annabeth spoke Greek_

_Percy stayed dry when the sprinklers went off in the joke shop_

_They have almost no knowledge of magic and standard wizarding subjects_

_Grover seems to like the taste of aluminum_

_They can all see the thestrals_

_Grover has horns_

_Percy disappeared before the Sorting, returned with ripped clothing, and fainted_

_When he woke up, he talked about a curse_

_They came from a nonexistent school_

_Annabeth has an impossibly vast knowledge of Greek mythology _

_The Room of Requirements gave them information on Greek mythology when Harry wanted to find out who the Americans are_

_Annabeth has a knife_

_Percy has a sword that looks like a pen_

_They fought a minotaur_

_They turned it to dust_

_I'm the only one who saw it_

Hermione read her list over, piecing different bits of information together. One thing was for sure, they weren't normal. In fact, Hermione wasn't sure they were wizards at all. Scratch that, there was no doubt in her mind that they were not wizards. What she wasn't sure of was whether they were entirely human or not.

The theory that had been building up in her mind was strong, too strong to avoid pursuing the answers. She had to know.

Hermione gathered her books on Greek mythology and the list and walked out of the Gryffindor common room.

She searched the entire castle from the Ravenclaw tower to the Hufflepuff common room. She walked into the Great Hall, but the exchange students seemed to have disappeared completely. Hermione turned to leave, and crashed into someone.

"Sorry!" Ernie Macmillan said. Hermione bent down to gather her books.

"It's alright," she murmured.

"You okay?" Justin Finch-Fletchley asked. Hermione nodded.

"You two know Grover, right?" Hermione asked. The boys nodded. "I need to find him. Have you seen him recently?"

"Yeah, he and his friends were headed down to the boat house," Justin said, pointing in the direction.

"Thanks!" Hermione called over her shoulder. She ran out of the castle and down towards the boat house. There was no one around. Everyone was probably staying inside, frightened because of the minotaur- er, the bull attack. Whichever it was.

Hermione reached the boathouse and slowed to catch her breath. She walked towards the entrance and peeked in.

The three exchange students stood in a clump together, talking. Hermione paused, deciding whether or not she should intrude. _Well_, she thought, _it's not like I haven't already._

She knocked on the doorframe and stood tall. All three of them looked back at her, horrified expressions on their faces. They parted just enough for her to see a shimmering image of a man hanging in the air.

"Who- what- who is that?" the man in the image demanded. Hermione stared at him, turning her head to the side. He had brown hair and a neatly trimmed beard. Percy swiped his hand through the man's face and the image dissolved into the air.

"Hey, Hermione, what's up?" Grover laughed nervously.

"Who was that?" she asked.

"Who was who?" Percy said, keeping a completely straight face.

"That man, in the picture. He was talking. I saw him," Hermione said, pointing to where the face used to be.

"It's just us in here. Are you feeling okay?" Annabeth asked. "Maybe I should take you to the nurse's office," she said. Hermione shook her head.

"No, I'm fine. I just... I know... I think I know who you are," she said shakily, glancing down at her books of Greek mythology.

"What do you mean?" Percy asked, his eyes flickering for a moment.

"You live in the stories Greek mythology," she said. None of them said anything, so Hermione continued. "Or, you don't live in them, but it's like you came from them! I saw what that bull was. I don't know what kind of magic made everyone else see a bull, but it was a Minotaur! And you had weapons. You turned the Minotaur to dust! I read all about it. And Grover, you have horns! I saw them at the Sorting!" The three Americans looked at each other.

"Clear sighted," Annabeth mumbled.

"What now?" Grover asked

"Chiron's going to kill us. _Mr. D_ is going to kill us," Percy exclaimed.

"Who are you? And don't lie to me," Hermione insisted. They all looked at each other and gave a slight nod.

"We're demigods," Percy said.

"Hey!" Grover exclaimed. "I'm a satyr," he proclaimed.

"All those things in your Greek mythology books, they're real. I know it sounds crazy, but thats how we felt when we first found out, and I bet that's what you thought when you found out you were a wizard," Annabeth said. Hermione stared at them, processing all of the information. There was a long silence. Hermione could see them squirming.

"Why are you here?" she asked finally.

"Dumbledore asked the director of our camp-"

"Camp?" Hermione wondered, cutting Percy off.

"Camp Half-Blood. It's a camp for kids like us. Somewhere safe," Annabeth said. "Dumbledore knows our camp director, Chiron, and asked if some of the campers could come watch over the school, specifically you, Ron, and Harry. He's worried about Voldemort," she finished.

"I don't... I can't believe it," Hermione murmured.

"It's a lot to take in. Trust me, I know," Percy said. Hermione's mind was a whirlwind of questions.

"Why couldn't anyone but me see the Minotaur and your swords?" she asked.

"We have our own type of magic, kind of. It's called the Mist. It blocks regular mortals from seeing things for what they truly are. It manipulates their vision. But-"

"So, why can I see through it?" Hermione demanded. Annabeth laughed at her eagerness.

"But," she continued, drawing out her word. "Some people can see through the Mist. You, Percy's mom, and our friend, Rachel,"

"I... I don't know what to say..." Hermione stammered.

"Say you won't rat us out?" Percy suggested hopefully. "We're supposed to be undercover,"

"I won't tell... wait, what about Ron and Harry?" she wondered. "Can I at least tell them?"

Annabeth shook her head. "We need as few people as possible to know about this," she said. Hermione nodded and took a deep breath. Keeping such a huge secret from them was going to be difficult, but she would have to manage.

"If you're demigods, who are your parents?" Hermione asked, a new question bursting out of her.

"I'm a daughter of Athena," Annabeth said.

"Son of Poseidon," Percy said. _That explains why he wasn't soaked at the joke shop like the rest of them_.

"And I'm a satyr," Grover chimed in.

"This is... this is unbelievable..." Hermione murmured. She closed her eyes and took deep breaths, trying to calm herself. Her mind spun, a thousand never ending gears working away in her mind.

"Do you need to sit down for a minute?" Annabeth asked, suddenly appearing beside her. Hermione took a startled step back.

"No," she said sharply. "I just... why... why did the minotaur attack you?"

"Ah, stuff like that's always happening to us. Apparently, we smell," Percy said.

"What?"

"Demigods have a specific scent that monsters and satyrs can pick up on," Grover said.

"We come from a camp that trains us to fight those monsters," Annabeth said.

A thought suddenly dawned on Hermione.

"You're joking," she said. "You honestly expect me to believe you're demigods? Who put you up to this? Ron, was it? Wouldn't be surprised if it were Fred and George," Hermione laughed.

"We're telling the truth,"

"Or is it that you are working with Voldemort? And this is just some plot to get me to trust. My god, I'm talking like Ron,"

Percy reached into his pocket and held up a plain ballpoint pen. The same one Hermione had seen before. He twisted the cap and the pen transformed into a bronze sword. Percy came towards her.

"What are you doing?" she said, stumbling backwards.

"Touch the blade," he said. "Try and cut your finger,"

"No! Get away from me!"

"I won't hurt you," Percy said calmly. He held the sword out by the blade so the handle was facing Hermione. She cautiously took it from him and examined the blade. She brought her finger to the point, expecting for the metal to be cool and sharp. But she felt nothing. She pushed her hand down farther. It sank down through the blade. She dipped her hand in and out of the blade, the steel turning to vapor around her fingers.

That was the last thing she remembered before fainting.

**I had so much fun with this, I don't know why. Please excuse mistakes as I mashed this out and really wanted to share ASAP.**

**I'd like to give a super special thanks to all of you! I just realized I've exceeded 400 reviews! And 200 favourites! And I'm almost at 400 followers! And I'm at sixty-thousand something views! I can't believe that so many people have seen my work. It's a dream come true to have so many people reading and (hopefully) enjoying my writing, even if it's just FanFiction on the internet.**

**LOVE YOU ALL! 3**

**if you review, I'll send you a internet hug!**


	23. Chapter XXIII: Percy

**I'M SO SORRY THIS HAS TAKEN SO LONG TO UPDATE! I WAS ON A CLASS TRIP TO NYC, WHICH WAS AWESOME, BY THE WAY! I HOPE YOU FORGIVE ME!**

**_Percy_**

Percy wasn't expecting her to faint. Definitely not expecting that. Riptide clattered to the ground and Hermione fell flat on her back. In moments, Annabeth, Grover, and Percy were all crowded around her.

"Great," Percy mumbled sarcastically. "She knows, and she's unconscious,"

"Hermione," Annabeth said, shaking the her limp arm. After a few seconds, Hermione's eyes fluttered open. She groaned and reached back to rub her head.

"What happened?" she asked groggily.

"What do you remember?" Annabeth asked.

Hermione closed her eyes and thought. "Uh... I came down here and I saw the man in the picture and... you are... you're demigods,"

"Yay, she remembers," Percy muttered sarcastically.

"Come on, we should get you inside so you can lie down. We'll take you to the nurses," Annabeth said. She helped Hermione to her feet. Hermione leant on Annabeth as they made their way up to the castle.

"You're demigods," Hermione repeated softly.

"You can't tell anyone, remember," Percy told her. She nodded, but then winced, putting a hand to her temple. They reached the castle and walked into the building.

"What are you doing?" someone asked. Percy turned his head. It was Neville, the other boy who he shared a room with.

"Oh, Hermione fell and hit her head. We're taking her to the nurses office," Percy said without blinking an eye.

"I'll take her," Neville said immediately.

"It's okay," Annabeth said.

"No, you've done enough. I can take her," he said, looking at them suspiciously. Neville walked over to Annabeth, put Hermione's arm over his shoulder, and led her away from them.

"I guess he doesn't like us either," Percy said.

"What are we going to do?" Grover asked.

"We have to stay calm and lay low, really guys," Annabeth said. "We can't do anything to jeopardize our identities or the safety of the school,"

"It's going to be kind of hard when we're not actually wizards," Grover whispered. "I don't even get how to use the wand things," he said.

"So, why don't we find out?" Annabeth said. "Come on, let's go get our wands and our spell books, and we can try out a few spells?" she suggested. Both they guys agreed and they went to retrieve each of their wands from their rooms. First, Grover went to his dorm, then Percy to his, and finally, they went up to the Ravenclaw tower.

Annabeth answered the riddle in less than three seconds, though Percy didn't understand it. The door opened. Percy could hear voices coming from inside.

"...still can't believe he's dating her," the voice belonged to the girl he had met earlier, Isabelle.

"Did you hear how obnoxious she was last night?" Padma sneered.

"'I thought it was easy'," Isabelle said mockingly, raising her voice. "Honestly, I don't know what he sees in her. He'd be much better off with-"

At this point, Annabeth was agitated, and it showered. She stormed into the room, leaving Percy and Grover lingering outside the door.

"Is there something you want to say to me?" Annabeth asked calmly. Percy peeked into the room and saw ten or so girls standing with Isabelle and Padma.

"Were you _spying_ on us?" Padma asked, flaring her nostrils.

"Actually, I came to get my wand and some books, and I simply heard what you were saying. You were talking in a public place. Not the smartest thing you've ever done, I'm sure."

"Are you calling me stupid? Wow, Anna, that's really rude,"

"Firstly, it's Anna_beth_, and second, I didn't say you were dumb, and I'm sure you're not, it's just the idea that's dumb," Annabeth said. Percy stifled a laugh. She was toying with her.

"You have been so rude to me the moment you got here. What have I ever done to you?"

"You made it very clear you thought Percy was out of my league, you started flirting with him, in front of me may I add, and now you're gossiping about me. That might be it, but I'm not positive. Look, I am really not trying to be rude. I've had a tough day, and I really don't want make any enemies, so I'm just going to grab my things and go," Annabeth sighed. Her blonde hair disappeared and then returned a moment later, all of the girls staying silent the entire time. Annabeth waved and left.

"Bye," she said, and walked out of the room. Annabeth walked past Percy and Grover, holding her backpack in her hand. Grover and Percy shared a look. Percy jogged to catch up to Annabeth.

"Hey, that was a very sassy performance," Percy said. She shrugged, and allowed a small smile to creep across her face.

"Isabelle needed someone to tell her off," Annabeth said.

"You don't have to worry about her, you know," Percy said, lacing his fingers through hers.

"I don't,"

"I like you a lot better," Percy continued.

"You better," she said. Percy laughed.

Grover came up to them and slung an arm around Annabeth's shoulders. "This is just like the old days. Kidnappings, putting ourselves in danger, and Annabeth's sass as well," he said. They all laughed, and Percy felt a heavy weight lifting off his chest.

They wandered around the halls until they found an empty classroom. There were rows of single desks arranged around a spinning chair in the center.

"Okay, Chiron said they were voice activated or something, right?" Annabeth said. "So, let's try out some spells,"

Percy held up his wand and examined the twig. He didn't understand how such a thin wooden stick could do anything, except maybe break in half.

"Uh... Alakazam!" he shouted, waving his wand in the air. Nothing happened. "I think mine is broken," I said.

"You have to use a real spell," Annabeth said, flipping through one of the books. She squinted at it for a moment. "Grover, can you read it," she sighed.

"Sure..." he said, looking at the book. "Well, there's a review of basic spells at the beginning," he said, turning the page. "Say, _Lumos_."

"Lumos," he said, raising his wand. The very tip of his wand began glowing. Percy held the light up to his eye. When he touched it, he felt nothing but the plain wood.

"Oh! Percy, you'll like this one. It conjures water, apparently," Grover said. "_Aguamenti_," Percy repeated the word and, sure enough, a stream of water spurted from the wand.

"Cool,"

Most of the day, the trio spent in the class room, memorizing different spells they thought would come in handy. Besides the water spell, Percy thought the _Tarantallegra_ dance was especially useful. It made the victim's legs dance uncontrollably. He had cast it on Grover, who returned the favor after.

When the trio split to their own tables at dinner, Percy sat alone. He slid into the seat at the very edge of the table. With no one to talk to, his mind started to wander to thoughts of Nico. _I'm going to find you,_ Percy called out to Nico in his mind. _I promise_.

"What did you do to Hermione?" Ron asked, shoving his shoulder. Percy looked up, confused for a moment.

"Huh?"

"She's in the hospital wing. Neville said she fainted when she was with you. Why?" Harry asked, crossing his arms across his chest.

"I didn't do anything. I swear. We were hanging out and he just fainted," Percy said.

"Why don't I believe you?" Ron snapped. Percy shrugged his shoulders in response.

"You stay away from her," Harry warned. Percy was starting to get really aggravated with how everyone was treating him and his friends.

"I haven't done anything to you, or Hermione," he said, trying to stay calm. Ron didn't have an answer, and Percy knew he had the upper hand in whatever sort of messed up argument they were in. Percy could almost see Ron racking his brain for something evil Percy or his friends had done.

"Who are you?" Harry asked in a low voice.

"I'm Percy Jackson."

"No, I mean, where are you from? We know nothing about you! For all we know, you could be some criminal," he said. "Hermione looked up your school and it doesn't exist in any of our books. A lot has happened to us, and this school. We don't need anyone here who wants to cause any harm to us or this school," he continued, his face devoid of emotion.

"I don't want to hurt the school, or anyone in it, I swear," Percy said. "But if you don't quit yelling at me for things I haven't done, I'll be tempted to whoop your butts."

The boys stared at each other in silence. Percy counted the seconds. 23...24... how much longer would he have to sit there waiting? Finally, Harry walked around the table and sat across from him, followed by Ron. It seemed that Percy had made some progress.

**AND THE TRUTH COMES OUT!**

**About two things, actually.**

**1. The whole thing about them being demigods**

**Percy finally understands why Ron and Harry don't trust him.**

**I am sorry for the delay! Really sorry!**


	24. Chapter XXIV: Ron

**Now wasn't that fast?**

**_Ron_**

Ron and Harry sat across from Percy, none of them talking. It seemed like that had met a mutual understanding that Percy was not evil, though Ron didn't expect for them all to be holding hands and eating candy together anytime soon.

For Ron, dinner couldn't end soon enough. Which was strange, considering how much he loved eating. The reason was the agonizing silence. The topic of conversation lately had been about Percy, but now that they had reached a unanimous truce, there wasn't much they could talk about. Percy made a few attempts, but they didn't say much for the most part.

At the end of dinner, Professor McGonagall stood at the podium and cleared her throat loudly. The entire hall silenced.

"Good evening. Before you are dismissed to your dorms, I would like to tell you that Headmaster Dumbledore will be out of school for a few days. Should you need to ask the Headmaster something important, it will either have to wait or you may ask me. Now, off to your dorms. There is a long day of classes tomorrow,"

When everyone was dismissed to their dorms, Percy told them he was going to find Annabeth and left towards the Ravenclaw table.

Ron and Harry walked out of the Great Hall. "So, that was..."

"Different," Harry finished. Ron nodded.

"Something about them... still..." he said, his voice trailing off.

"Why don't we go see if Hermione's okay?" Harry suggested. Ron agreed. Maybe she would have some insight to how they should act now that Percy had ensured them outwardly they meant no harm.

The two boys walked up the stairs towards the hospital wing. Hermione was awake once they got there, lying on her side. She was deep in thought.

"Hermione, are you feeling okay?" Ron asked. She blinked a few times, coming out of a daze, and sat up.

"Hm? Oh, hi," she said distantly, leaning back on her pillow.

"What happened? Neville told us you fainted when you were with Percy, Annabeth, and Grover. He thinks they had something to do with it," Harry said.

"Oh, no, it's fine. They're fine. Normal. We had a talk. I was wrong before. About their schools not being in the books. I found it. They're fine. I'm fine," she said. She sounded nervous.

"Are you sure?" Ron asked. "You seem sort of... distracted," Ron observed.

"Honestly, I'm okay," she said forcefully.

"How did you faint anyways?" Harry asked.

"I didn't drink enough water. I didn't sleep enough. I just fainted while I was with Annabeth, Percy, and Grover," she said. "Don't accuse them for everything,"

"We weren't... accusing them," Harry said.

"Oh..." Hermione said slowly.

"Well, we sat with Percy at dinner," Harry started.

"And he told us that he doesn't want to hurt anyone,"

"So, you trust him, then?" she asked. For the first time, she had given them her full attention.

"Well, not entirely trust... it's more like, we don't have anything against him anymore," Ron said. Hermione nodded, but winced and put her hands to her head.

"What are you two doing here? She needs rest," Madam Pomfrey said, rushing into the room. "Out you go," she told Harry and Ron, waving her hand towards the door.

Ron and Harry said bye to Hermione and walked out of the hospital wing and towards the Gryffindor Common Room. Ron's stomach rumbled.

"Was that you?" Harry asked. Ron nodded. "How are you still hungry?" Ron smiled sheepishly and shrugged.

"Do you think I could get slice of pie?" he wondered. There had been a pecan pie at dinner. Ron had polished off three pieces easily.

"Don't you have food in the room?" Harry asked. Ron paused. He had already eaten most of it, though he thought there might have been some more Chocolate Frogs.

"Yeah. Come on," he said, running towards up stairs. Harry followed him. All of a sudden, the stairs started moving.

"Ugh! No! Not again!" Ron exclaimed. "Whose idea was it to install moving staircases?"

Once the staircases settled in a position, Harry and Ron walked to the top of the staircase, intending to find another way around.

"Let's go this way," Harry said, turning left. Ron followed him and they turned the corner up ahead.

"Whoa!" Ron said as he tripped and fell to the floor.

"Terribly sorry, sir, Dobby didn't mean to- Harry Potter! Ronald Weasley!" Dobby exclaimed. Dobby was wearing an oversized sweater, and layers of socks. He had put them over his hands and even used one large tube sock as a hat.

"Dobby! How are you?" Harry asked.

"Very good. Very happy to see Harry Potter again," he said eagerly. "Oh, and Mr. Weasley," he added.

"You too, Dobby," Ron said, standing up and brushing himself off. "Though I could have done without falling over," he added, rubbing the knee where most of the impact had been taken.

"Sorry, sir," Dobby said. "Dobby was rushing because he has to go help clean the kitchen. Dobby wouldn't be late, except for Dobby found a new sock," he said, holding up a black sock.

"Okay, well, it was good seeing you again," Harry said. Dobby smiled and put his sock back in the pocket of his sweater.

"Such a good day. Dobby met a new friend and saw his old friends," he said excitedly.

"What new friend?" Ron asked.

"Miss. Annabeth... Annabeth... She only told Dobby her first name. She was awake very early, in the Great Hall. She was very nice, but scared of something. Dobby could tell, because she had her knife,"

"Knife..." Ron started slowly. He and Harry exchanged a look. "I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that. No more suspicions," Ron said, more to himself.

"Dobby must go now. Good bye, Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley!" he said before disappearing around the corner.

"That is one funny looking elf."

**Aren't you proud of how fast that is? Sorry it is slightly shorter though. I'm trying to mash out as many chapters as I can!**

**I love writing with Dobby! Yeeeeeeeeeee!**

**Thank you to all of you for your support! It means so much to me!**

**Also, I have a special award to give out to **_GraecusFulminata_**. All though you are all amazing and I am always so touched whenever I get a review or favourite or anything, it was this awesome person that actually made me cry when I read her review. Now, part of it may have been the fact I was having such a horrid day, but I had never cried form a review before, so I thought I should mention it. *Shrug***

**While I'm mentioning people, I may as well say that I've had some really cool conversations over PMs with **_horse-crazy girl13_**, **_alpha BBB_**, **_Lime Green Squirrel_**, and**_Folan00_**. I love talking to you guys and knowing if you're doing okay, so my PM box is always open!**

**(Except for when I have to leave over the summer...)**


	25. Chapter XXV: Grover

**MORE FASTNESS! :D (kinda)**

**So, this chapter is gonna be jumping forwards in time. So, a longer amount of time will be passing in story land! I tried to make it longer, though there is less dialogue.**

**_Grover_**

Grover was worrying about a lot of things. He was worrying about Nico. He was worrying about Hermione keeping their identities a secret. And he was worrying about not being able to eat.

There was not enough food for a satyr. Sure, the salads were good, but what he really wanted was some aluminum. He had some in his room, but it seemed like there was always someone else in there.

So, that was why when arrived at his room and none of the other boys were there yet, he was so overjoyed. He dug into his bag and took a large bite of one of the cans he had hidden at the bottom. The metal left a pleasant tang in his mouth.

"Finally," he sighed through another mouthful.

Someone pulled open the door. Grover shut his bag quickly and popped the last of the can in his mouth.

"Hey, Grover," Ernie said. Grover looked over his shoulder and smiled with a closed mouth. He hid his face as he chewed the last few savory bites and swallowed.

"Hi," Grover said.

"I think I'm going to hit the hay a bit early tonight," he said.

"Hay?" Grover said, lifting his head up. "Did you say 'Hay'?" Ernie looked at him strangely.

"Uh... yeah," he said. "Hit the hay, like, go to sleep," Grover nodded. He had barely been paying attention.

"Riiiiiight," Grover said, with a nervous laugh. Ernie shook his head and started to get ready for bed. Grover, who had claimed the bed in the corner specifically so he could change beside the wall, and be hidden by his bed, also got ready.

He took off his fake shoes and uncomfortable pants as well and slipped under the covers quickly. Keeping his legs hidden, he threw on a Camp-Half Blood t-shirt to sleep in and pulled on a night cap that Juniper suggest he bring.

He missed her a lot.

The next day, Grover woke up just as Ernie and Justin were leaving the room. Zacharias Smith, a blonde haired boy who was Grover's third roommate, was still getting ready.

Grover wasn't entirely sure what happened between Zacharias and his other two roommates, but their definitely seemed to be some resent. When Grover asked Justin the day before, he said briefly that Zacharias was an "annoying-obnoxious-bogey-eating-coward".

He and Grover had never really had any sort of conversation besides "Hello" "Hello" "I'm Zacharias Smith" "I'm Grover" and that was the end of it.

Zacharias cast Grover a rather unpleasant look and turned away as he straightened his tie. Zacharias left the room, slamming the door behind him.

"Good morning to you too," he muttered. Grover swung his goat legs over the edge of the bed against the corner, so anyone who walked in wouldn't be able to see, clear sighted or not. He quickly put on his straight leg pants, socks, and pointy toed shoes, which were even worse than his sneakers.

He finished changing into his uniform and found his large, orange and blue striped beanie hat. He hadn't worn it in ages, but after losing his other one to Malfoy, his only other option was a fedora that barely fit over his curls and his horns, so it had to be the beanie.

Grover took advantage of the fact he was alone in his room and took an empty soda can from his bag and ate every scrap. And then he took another one.

Once he was finished and relatively satisfied, Grover walked out of his room, stuffing his wand in his pocket. There were a few people lingering in the common room, none of whom Grover recognized. For the most part, it seemed like everyone had gone for breakfast.

Grover walked to the Great Halls, and through the large doors. The paint on the ceiling seemed to have changed. Instead of being painted like the night sky, it looked like a bright sunny morning.

"Ah, Mr. Underwood, perfect," a voice said. Grover saw Professor Sprout, the head of the Hufflepuff house, coming up to him. He had met her briefly the day before. "I have your timetable," she said. "I'm looking forwards to seeing you in Herbology." She handed him a piece of parchment paper with a schedule on it.

"Thank you," Grover said. Sprout nodded and walked towards the table at the front of the room where the rest of the teachers sat.

Grover sat down at the Hufflepuff table, looking around for a moment to see if he was able to spot Percy or Annabeth. Although he didn't see either of them, he was glad to see Hermione across the room at the Gryffindor table back on her feet.

Grover sat through breakfast, working his way through a slice of bread, though he didn't particularly enjoy the bland taste or spongy , it was better than staying hungry all day.

While he ate, he examined his time table. He was taking Herbology, Care of Magical Creatures, Potions, Muggle Studies, and Defense Against the Dark Arts. That morning, he had Defense Against the Dark Arts with Professor Snape, and Herbology, followed by a free period. He wondered if Percy and Annabeth had gotten their schedules as well.

When it was time for classes to start, Grover got lost easily. He ended up arriving at the DADA class five minutes late. He opened the door quietly and tried to slip in unnoticed, but it was no use.

"You're late," a droning voice said. A man in dark robes with pale skin and dark hair stood at the front of the room. He must have been Professor Snape. All the students looked at him. Grover immediately spotted Annabeth and Percy sitting in the back row.

"S-sorry. I got lost," Grover said.

"I do not care for excuses, Mr. Underwood," Snape said. "Sit down, and take off that hat." Grover took a seat in the back of the classroom beside Percy and Annabeth and turned his attention to the front.

"Your hat," Snape said forcefully.

"I can't take it off. I need-"

"Five points from Hufflepuff," he said. Grover grimaced and removed his hat slowly. He stooped his head low and pushed his hair up with his hands.

"Hey," Percy whispered. Grover nodded in acknowledgement.

"Resuming with the lesson, Dean Thomas, please continue. What is a Dementor?" Snape said. A few kids in the class let out annoyed sighs, like the answer was obvious.

"A Dementor is a Dark creature that feeds off of people's souls and happiness," a boy said. Grover couldn't see where the voice was coming from, because his head was practically under his desk.

"Correct," Snape said. "I understand that some of you are already familiar with the Patronus Charm," Snape said bitterly. "But you will learn along with the class," he snapped.

"The Patronus Charm is as followed: Ex-pect-o Pat-ro-num," Snape said, separating the syllables. "The key to a successful Patronus is to think of a happy thought while preforming the charm. You will each come to the front and preform the spell. One. By. One." Snape paused between each word. "Beginning with... Mr. Underwood,"

Grover winced. Not only would he have to go up to the front of a class full of strangers and make a presentation of _without his hat_. It was like a scene from one of his nightmares.

He stood up and made his way to the front of the classroom. He took his wand out of his pocket and took a breath and pointed it away from anyone in the room.

"Um... E... Expect-"

"Don't hesitate. You must speak smoothly," Snape said, making Grover jump. "Think of a happy thought," he said. _Kind of hard_, Grover thought, _With you breathing down my neck._ He gave it a shot nonetheless.

"Expecto Patronum," Grover said. Suddenly, a silvery beam shot from the tip of the wand. A small billy goat made of the silvery mist trotted around, leaving a trail of light behind it.

Grover smiled.

"Well, Mr. Underwood, you have done a surprisingly sufficient job," Snape said once the animal disappeared. A few of the students nodded approvingly. Grover quickly returned to his seat and received a thumbs up from Percy.

Snape continued to call up the thirty or so students one by one. Annabeth's Patronus was an owl, and Percy's was a horse. Grover wasn't surprised by either.

After class, he and Percy said goodbye to Annabeth and went to Herbology together, while Annabeth went to Muggle Studies.

Herbology was easy for Grover, but Percy's hand got trapped by a gnarled vine, and he accidentally tipped over a Mandrake pot, causing the plant to start shrieking unbearably. Professor Sprout handled the situation efficiently enough, but Grover's highly sensitive ears were ringing.

Percy, Annabeth, and Grover all had a free period together. They went down to the boathouse again to practice their spells even more, but Percy quickly became bored and coaxed Annabeth into sparring with him.

Once they had finished, the three of them sat on the floor, their backs to the wall. Percy dozed off on Annabeth's shoulder, Annabeth doodled buildings in the margins of her books, and Grover played a tune on his reed pipes. It was almost as if they were back in camp.

The week passed slowly. Annabeth and Percy (especially Percy) were having trouble keeping up in class because of their dyslexia and ADHD.

But they did have some escape from their school work. Everyday, they would go down to the boathouse when they all had a free period and practice their spells. Percy and Annabeth would often spar as well.

Quite a few times, Hermione came to help them with their spells and homework. Or, if Percy and Annabeth were sparring, she would sit and watch, or do work of her own. The three had grown accustomed to her company, and she had kept their secret to herself.

Day after day past the same way. Dumbledore had still not returned by the fifth day.

Percy was growing more antsy as the day they were to meet Voldemort again approached. When they told Hermione about their meeting, she frowned.

"What is it?" Percy asked seriously.

"Voldemort is merciless. I don't understand why he spared your cousin. He was just a boy spying on him. The only reason I could think of would be that he's scared. Whatever Nico did, it must have been quite something to make Voldemort afraid to kill him," she said. Percy laughed slightly.

"Good old Ghost King, freaking out half-dead dudes," he muttered. He turned and walked to the entrance of the boathouse, leaning on the doorframe. Grover could tell he was nervous. He and Annabeth approached him.

"You okay, man?" Grover asked.

"Yeah, I'm just worried about Nico," he said. "What if... what if something happened to him?"

"I'm sure he's fine," Annabeth said.

"But what if something did happen? I told myself I'd keep him safe after Bianca died. I don't know what I'd do if he..." Percy's voice trailed off. Annabeth gave him a kiss and hugged him.

"He'll be fine, Percy," Grover said, patting his shoulder. Percy smiled slightly and returned the gesture.

"Two more days," Percy said.

Annabeth and Grover repeated in unison. "Two more days,"

**Hi lovely people! Please stay to read this AN, even though it is long.**

**So, I leave for camp on Thursday (later today, cause I just realized it's midnight), so I don't know if I will not be able to finish this story until I return, which won't be for a while. Although I would love to, I just don't have enough time in the day! I can try and get another chapter down, and trust me, I will try, but if I don't, please forgive me. I will resume mid-August (please don't hate me!)**

**I want to thank you for being such an amazing, supportive group of readers! You encourage me to keep writing and you make me more confident in myself. My year has been... well, it could have been better, let's just say. But whenever I see I've gotten a new review, or follower, or favourite, it really does make me feel amazing. I've never felt like I had much to offer, but knowing that someone somewhere in the world enjoys my story is the best feeling I could ever have hoped for.**

**Thank you all again, and please forgive the coming lack of writing for the next while.**

**Also, I'm sorry for leaving off where I did (you know, them just about to meet the Dark Lord again)**


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